Agnes … it was an event in my lifetime that I’ll never forget.
Being the 50th anniversary week of the great and devastating flood all the news media have been showcasing TV specials and newsprint articles on the flood.
The disaster was one of mammoth size, encompassing practically the entire Wyoming Valley. Even 50 years on, the mind is vivid of the experiences I remember.
It is one of those, “Where were you when it happened,” moments.
Even though I was within three months of turning 15 and acting like a typical teenager, that summer I had to put my big boy pants on and dig in like everyone else in the valley.
Although the flood did not affect my house, helping others was just something one did at that time. Every abled-bodied person was called to duty in one form or another to help less fortunate people and businesses and trust me, everywhere you looked someone you knew or even didn’t know needed help.
People that didn’t have homes involved in the flood probably hosted families that had been affected.
My mom took in one of her good friends and her two children. It was strange having people stay at our home, but yet, it was fun as well.
Two words come to me from that time, grateful and gracious. People hit by the flood were grateful for any help they received and those unaffected were gracious in helping.
Maybe that’s why we were deemed Valley with a Heart. Back then; everyone had a heart, no exceptions.
Everyone banded together, everyone pitched in, everyone offered assistance, just like I witnessed during the flood of 2011 when Tropical Storm Lee hit West Pittston hard.
Sights of the devastation, sounds of trucks and helicopters, and the smell of flood mud stick out in my mind the most.
The National Guard was called in to make sure there was order as well as to pitch in when needed, and there seemed to be helicopters flying around everywhere, many military.
There was something about the 1972 that differed with the 2011 flood, the devastation and destruction of houses and buildings. So many homes up and down the Susquehanna from West Pittston to Plymouth and everywhere in between had homes moved right off of their foundations. I didn’t see that in 2011.
The mud was different as well. I recall walking about West Pittston after the ’11 flood and I didn’t get the sense of the strong odor of mud or the thickness of mud as in ’72.
Mud was everywhere in ’72 and when you got down to clean off mud, for some reason, it would reappear. It literally would take several times to get rid of mud in basements, first floors or even off the streets and lawns.
It was all so unpleasant and many times you would have to get the thought out of your mind how disgusting, dirty, and smelly a clean up job would be.
Two other thoughts come to mind — the amount of rainfall and how fast the river was traveling.
The rain was very hard driven, but the wind was not highly sustained, as you would think.
This past Thursday, the documentary Agnes 50th Anniversary was premiered at the F.M. Kirby Center with new photos and newsreels. It was a sold out show with over 1,800 in attendance.
Former meteorologist Tom Clark was featured early on in the movie talking about the birth and history of the storm. He said that for a storm of that magnitude, the highest wind speeds recorded were 30 mph.
The film, a product of the Wilkes-Barre Preservation Society, was done very well and for as many people in attendance witnessed the flood, there were quite a few that were not born until after and some way after the flood.
For the younger sect, it was a real eye-opener. The way the film was presented was to put you at 1972 where you could feel the emotions evoked by the flood.
In interviewing a few people after the movie, Amanda Panuski had a whole different appreciation for what took place and how the valley rebuilt.
She said, “I have so much more an appreciation and respect for those who rebuilt this valley after the flood. I’ve always heard stories but this documentary opened my eyes to so much I didn’t know. Because of their determination, our valley could be rebuilt. Those of us born after the flood were given such good lives because of the sacrifice and determination they had in order to persevere and rebuild. I have nothing but gratitude for what they did for all of us.”
The movie really does put you into the moment. Personally I will buy a DVD of the documentary.
If anyone is interested in purchasing the $20 movie, you can do so by going to https://tinyurl.com/bfe7m2f5. Tax and shipping costs will be applied.
If you’d like to see the movie on the big screen, the Kirby Center will have two more show times on Wednesday, June 29, at 1 p.m. with doors opening at noon and at 7:30 p.m. with doors opening at 6:30 p.m.
I suggest you purchase a copy of the DVD or get to the Kirby to see the movie. You won’t regret it.
Quote of the week
“If there’s a book that you want to read, but it hasn’t been written yet, then you must write it.” – Toni Morrison
Thought of the week
“At any given moment, you have the power to say: this is not how the story is going to end.” – Christine Mason Miller
Bumper sticker
“Fear is forward. No one is afraid of yesterday.” Renata Adler