Were Lessons Learned from Ohio’s Deadliest Disaster?

Those who witnessed it have described it as a “wall of water” that destroyed homes and swept away vehicles, swing sets, toys, tossed-out tires, abandoned appliances, dead livestock, and hundreds of trees in the early morning hours of June 14, 1990.

The flash flooding along Wegee and Pipe creeks erased 80 homes, damaged more than 250 more, and claimed the lives of 26 adults and children. Although Neffs resident Scott Porter did not live in the Upper Ohio Valley 31 years ago, for the days following the natural disaster he was glued to the national news coverage and to the telephone he used while trying to reach the family and friends he knew resided along the two waterways.

Media outlets in the Upper Ohio Valley recalled the death and devastation two days ago to recall the deadliest flood in the history of the state of Ohio.

“I remember turning on the TV and immediately seeing the coverage of the floods on the national news, and they were showing the aerial view of the flooding that took place. I could see the debris that had entered the Ohio River,” Porter recalled. “The amount of debris had to be acres wide; there was just so much.

“Now, I know there was a program that involved the cleaning of the creeks and streams after that flash flooding, and that was a great program, but it didn’t get funded by state government again. That was a shame. That is something that has to keep happening,” he said. “In Belmont County, we have no regulations about keeping the creeks and the creek banks clear of debris. All we have is the Ohio Drainage Law, but all that does is put it all back on the landowner.”

The Tales Told

The Los Angeles Times reported about a 9-year-old girl who was swept away but stayed alive for seven hours by hanging on to logs before drifting to the Ohio River shoreline. The reporter also wrote about the 5.5 inches of rain that fell in just over three hours and transformed the trickling Wegee and Pipe creeks into raging rivers.

Porter’s own family was, in fact, touched by the tragedy.

“My brother-in-law was in the old 3-Ks Bar the night the flooding took place,” he said. “He was shooting pool the night of the flood, and the only reason he didn’t get swept away by the water was because he was holding onto one of those big cigarette machines we had back then. He told me that he had heard about the creeks getting high, but when the water broke through the building, holding on was the only thing he could do.

“He and one of his buddies were able to hold onto these two ladies, too. His buddy got swept out, but he survived, but my brother-in-law held onto those ladies,” he said. “But he won’t talk about it. He’s been approached by all kinds of media outlets, but he’s never talked about it. The ladies did write him a Thank You note and wanted to meet him, but he’s been done with it since that night.”

The conversations Porter continued having with family members and friends were filled with pure sadness.

“For weeks after those floods, everyone was in shock. Everyone knew someone who lost their life. People were speechless,” Porter said. “Have the people along that run every really recovered? I don’t think so. I’m willing to bet anyone who still lives along those creeks is really gun shy these days when we get one of those big rains.

“For several days after the flash flooding, there were a lot of highs and lows because one minute a death was confirmed, and then the next minutes, the rescue crews found someone alive,” he continued. “In September 2004, I believe we were lucky that the flooding started during the day, but 31 years ago along those two creeks, the waters raged at around 1 a.m. I believe that made a big difference because most of the victims were probably in bed sleeping.”

The Strength of Water

Since serving in service roles for the village of Bellaire and the city of Martins Ferry, Porter has encountered the aged, underground infrastructure that hinders local communities throughout the Upper Ohio Valley. Wooden water lines, valves that were installed in the early 1900s, and abandoned sewer canals have presented a plethora of problems, and now the entire region is struggling with the storm-sewer separation mandate issued by the federal Environmental Protection Agency.

“Updates to the current storm-sewer systems in this area are long overdue, but I have seen even large culverts get clogged because of debris that doesn’t make much sense,” he explained. “I’ve had to deal with some culverts that have been clogged up with desks and old refrigerators. That infrastructure isn’t constructed big enough for debris like that.”

That is why Porter is hopeful this year’s remembrance reminds officials in Belmont County of the issues of dumping and debris along streams and creeks that normally are calm and peaceful.

“Every year we remember the folks who lost their lives in those flash floods, but are we doing them justice by not trying to fix the biggest problem? I don’t think so,” he insisted. “It’s not a state or federal issue because the regulations are out there. It is the personal responsibility of those property owners that pile of that stuff close to the creeks. They have to remember that water is going to do what it needs to do.

“I lived in Las Vegas at the time of these tragic deaths took place, and I remember thinking that people had to learn a lesson from it,” he said. “It’s my opinion that nothing was learned though.”

That is why Porter’s nerves are tweaked every time the National Weather Service issues warnings for severe thunderstorms in East Ohio.

“I really don’t think we learned anything from the Wegee and Pipe Creek floods, as far as local government doing what they can do to avoid it in the future,” he said. “Now, the county EMA folks have taken those floods, they have reviewed how they responded then, and they have really improved their planning for anything similar. But as far as those local residents and local government, well, I do not feel they have done the same.

“As far as the residents, it comes down to personal responsibility when it comes to what those property owners along the creeks. When that tragedy took place, it was the debris that clogged the creek, and then it was broke loose and created a tidal wave of water,” Porter added. “What those residents should have done is remove that debris from the situation, but that is not what has taken place based on what I see when I travel those roads.”