High water recalls

It is Monday, May 19 as I write. Hope everyone is dry when weekly papers go to press. Can't help remembering the floods of 1964.

Nobody actually "knows" if we will have flooding this spring, but the weather folks know there is a potential because of heavy mountain snow pack… but didn't expect the record rainfalls coupled to quite mild temperatures.

The "complete hell" broke loose Monday the 8th of June, but the trouble started on the Continental Divide the day before, Sunday the 7th.

Upon arriving at the radio station early Monday, I was snowed under by warnings from the sheriff's offices, Forest Service, Bureau of Reclamation and Weather Service. Went on the air giving listeners the warning information. One early call was from my boss who lived in Day's Acres near Woodland Park in Kalispell. He wondered if I should go a little easier because we might scare our listeners too much. Told him he was in a known danger zone with water already over riverbanks to his east.

Later that day, I went down to my boss' house to help him save furnishings. The Flathead River was backing up water into all low places around Kalispell, including Day's Acres and Evergreen. Shortly after noon, I went out to the Strip where Wal-Mart is now. Joined some other men wading to a small island just north of the Conrad Cemetery and drove a little herd of stranded cattle across to higher ground. The muddy water was very cold. Upon returning to the highway still above water near Western Building Center, we looked back and the frightened cattle had swum back to their island. I assume they all later drowned. We also recall many cattle from Nyaak Flats were washed completely down to Flathead Lake.

Not known to us until later in the week was the loss of so many lives on the east side of the Continental Divide.

Many of us recall Mel Ruder working night and day, by car, foot, boat and airplane, putting out special editions of the Hungry Horse News to keep people informed. He also helped me get news out over the radio. Mel later became the first Montana newsman to win the Pulitzer Prize, for his flood coverage.

Just last week on the 14th, I received a letter from Polson businessman, Norm Johnson. He, too, remembers those tough times and related a very interesting adventure:

"As this spring unfolds, I am constantly reminded of the spring of 1964. I hope it turns out differently. At that time I lived in Martin City and on a late rainy Sunday afternoon, I asked my mom if she wanted to go for a ride with me up to the Garden Wall Road Camp. She refused and I went anyway. On the way up I noted McDonald Creek was almost up to the road in Moose Country. Waves were splashing onto the highway at Logan Creek Bridge. Rocks were coming down on the highway with torrents of water all the way up to Road Camp where the turnaround was that year. I turned around and with some trepidation headed down. There was even more debris on the highway coming back between Road Camp and the Loop. Water was rushing down the highway as the drains were plugged with debris. I hurried back to West Glacier from the Loop with the idea of notifying authorities of the problem. However, there was no one around the admin building at West Glacier so I went home and called back to the Park. I told whoever answered the telephone that I thought the road up above the Loop was going to become totally washed out in places as I could see the asphalt being cut away by massive amounts of water. I also informed the person that McDonald Creek by then had crossed the highway at Moose Country. I told them that I was concerned that all their equipment may be stranded up on the hill. Whoever I spoke with stated they would look into the situation. Now you know the rest of the story, as Paul Harvey says."

Thank you, Norm Johnson! See you all next week… come hell or high water.

G. George Ostrom is a Kalispell resident and Hungry Horse News columnist.