Disaster
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Ebook
(3)
Galveston Burning
A History of the Fire Department and Major Conflagrations
by James F. Anderson
Part of the Disaster series
Since 1821, when Jean Lafitte sailed away from a burning Campeche, the history of Galveston has often been wreathed in smoke. Over the next century, one inferno breached the walls of Moro Castle, while another reduced forty-two blocks of the residential district to ash. Recognizing the importance of protecting the city, concerted efforts were made to establish the first paid fire department, create a city waterworks and regulate construction standards. Yet even with all the forethought and planning, rogue fires continued to consume architectural gems like Nicholas Clayton's “Electric Pavilion”. Author James F. Anderson explores the lessons that Galveston has learned from its fiery past in order to safeguard its future.
Ebook
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Southwest Virginia and Maritime Disasters
From The Ss Vestris To The Morro Castle And Beyond
by Brandon Whited
Part of the Disaster series
Explore southwest Virginia's local links to maritime history. Until the growing popularity of air travel post-World War II, Americans going abroad traveled by ship. Though Southwest Virginia is not a coastal region, its residents traveled far and wide. Some were involved in the most infamous shipwrecks of the age of steamships, many of whom lost their lives. The foundering of the legendary Titanic on her maiden voyage, the horrific fire aboard Morro Castle and the smoke-engulfed decks of U.S.S. Arizona at Pearl Harbor were all witnessed by Southwest Virginians. Local author Brandon Whited grants them their long-overdue place in the history books.
Ebook
(6)
Shark Attacks of the Jersey Shore
A History
by Patricia Heyer
Part of the Disaster series
Every summer, thousands flock to the Jersey Shore for its beaches and boardwalks, but lurking in the depths beyond is a historic threat to tranquility. Dozens of shark attacks and interactions have occurred throughout Jersey Shore history that reveal bravery, heartbreak and the hubris of man. A boy paid a gruesome price for teasing a trapped shark in the first recorded attack in 1842. The three bloody attacks of 1960 left one man's limb amputated. The horrific summer of 1916 included seven attacks in a two-week span and crafted the caricature of the killer shark that remains in popular culture today. Authors Patricia and Robert Heyer dive into the history of when two apex predators, man and shark, cross paths on the shores of New Jersey.
Ebook
(2)
The 1849 Cholera Outbreak in Jefferson City
by Gary Elliott
Part of the Disaster series
In 1849, a steamship named after President James Monroe headed from St. Louis to Council Bluffs, Iowa. The passengers were members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from Philadelphia. At St. Louis, they were joined with a group of California gold diggers from Jeffersonville, Indiana. But their trip was interrupted when cholera broke out on board. Local fourteen-year-old James McHenry discovered the steamship after it landed at Jefferson City and observed the dead and dying victims along the riverbank. Author Gary Elliott details the history of the outbreak in the city and its far-reaching effects.
Ebook
(4)
The 1924 Tornado in Lorain & Sandusky
Deadliest in Ohio History
by Betsy D'Annibale
Part of the Disaster series
June 28, 1924, dawned hot and sunny, with fluffy white clouds hovering over a blue and inviting Lake Erie. For two Ohio communities, Lorain and Sandusky, the day ended in unimaginable disaster. In the late afternoon, the blue sky turned dark, and the wispy white puffs morphed into a mass of black thunderclouds as a monster formed on the lake. An F4 tornado, unexpected and not understood, was born from a thunderstorm on the now turbulent waters of Lake Erie. It charged ashore, smashing into Sandusky, retreated again to the lake and then headed east before turning abruptly south to make landfall in Lorain. Before the massive funnel lifted, it would destroy a city, create death records still unbroken and change the lives of thousands of people.
Ebook
(1)
The Santa Barbara B-24 Disasters: A Chain of Tragedies Across Air, Land & Sea
by Robert A. Burtness
Part of the Disaster series
Three separate and related tragedies occurred during and after a training run of a B-24 Liberator on July 4, 1943, over the Pacific off Santa Barbara County: The heavy bomber crashed near Santa Barbara and two of the crew were never found, another B-24 search-and-rescue crew looking for survivors off the coast never returned at all and was found later to have cashed on San Miguel Island, killing all 12 aboard, and the Air Force investigators of that accident, years later, in 1954, coming to the island in a Coast Guard cutter, hit a yacht, killing two more people. Author Robert A. Burtness takes you inside these somber stories with recorded first-hand accounts and vintage images.
Ebook
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Icy Winters on the Chesapeake Bay
A History
by James L. Foster
Part of the Disaster series
Sailing on the Chesapeake Bay's myriad inlets in summer, it is hard to imagine that, come January, icebreakers may be plowing the waters you cruised in July. When portions of the Great Shellfish Bay are iced up, the flow of commerce is impeded. At the turn of the nineteenth century, with the center of the new nation's government established it its arms, a frozen Bay meant that the United States' emergence to a status on par with the foremost nations of the world might be painfully slow. James Foster chronicles the disasters and pitfalls, large and small, that come with the coldest of winters.
Ebook
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The Washington Arsenal Explosion
by Brian Bergin
Part of the Disaster series
In 1864, residents of Washington, D.C., mourned together at the largest funeral the district had ever seen. In the midst of the Civil War, the poor Irish neighborhood of the Island lost twenty-one mothers, sisters and daughters. On June 17, dangerous working conditions and a series of unfortunate events led to the deadly explosion of a Federal arsenal at Fort McNair, where the young women made cartridges to assist the war effort. In the wake of the horrific event, a monument was erected at Congressional Cemetery to honor those who were lost. Author Brian Bergin similarly memorializes these women through his book, detailing the poor working conditions, the investigation into the avoidable events leading to the tragedy and the reaction of a community already battered by the Civil War.
Ebook
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Historic Aircraft Wrecks of San Bernardino County
by G. Pat Macha
Part of the Disaster series
Weather, darkness and twists of fate have contributed to more than three hundred airplane crashes in San Bernardino County, California. Many of these accidents occurred in the vast Mojave Desert, others on the cloud-shrouded, snow-capped mountains of the largest county in the lower forty-eight states. Searches often were labored yet fruitless, even for the privileged: Frank Sinatra's mother perished here in a downed plane. The quest for an aircraft containing $5,000 in cash has become the stuff of legend. Tales of survival in uninhabited, rugged landscapes have been especially harrowing. Join renowned aircraft-crash search specialist G. Pat Macha for dozens of sorrowful, triumphant, touching and surprising true stories of those who lived through the ordeals of plane crashes--and others who didn't.
Ebook
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The Great Hurricanes of North Carolina
by John Hairr
Part of the Disaster series
From the horrific Independence Hurricane of 1775, the most lethal storm to strike its coast, to the ruinous Hugo in September 1989, a path has been cut along the shores of the Tarheel State-a path not easily forgotten. Engagingly written and illustrated with historical photos that graphically depict the disastrous effects of these mighty storms, this book is a gripping read!
Ebook
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The Great Fire of Petersburg, Virginia
by Tamara J. Eastman
Part of the Disaster series
On July 16, 1815, a fire began in a small stable in Petersburg. After only a few hours, almost two-thirds of the city lay in ruins. Citizens stood on the banks of the Appomattox River and watched as wind blew flames from one building to the next. The tragedy claimed a dozen lives and destroyed more than five hundred homes. The fire raged until it was quelled by a downpour of rain. Stories of heroism from firefighters and landowners were left in the aftermath. Author Tamara Eastman describes the city before the fire, the horrific event and the collective efforts to rebuild a stronger city.
Ebook
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Portland's Greatest Conflagration
The 1866 Fire Disaster
by Michael Daicy
Part of the Disaster series
On the Fourth of July in 1866, joy turned to tragedy in Portland, Maine. A boy threw a firecracker onto a pile of wood shavings and it erupted in a blaze as residents prepared to celebrate the 110th anniversary of American independence in the momentous time following the Civil War. The violent conflagration killed two people and destroyed all structures on nearly thirty streets. Authors Michael Daicy and Don Whitney, both firefighters, chronicle the day's catastrophic events, as well as the bravery of those who fought the ferocious fire, dispelling the myth that ill-trained firefighting contributed to the devastation.
Ebook
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Historic Aircraft Wrecks of San Diego County
by G. Pat Macha
Part of the Disaster series
Clear weather and a natural harbor made San Diego an early aviation hub, but success in flight came with devastating tragedies. The remains of more than four hundred aircrafts lie scattered across the county's deserts and mountains. Experts estimate that dozens more are on the ocean floor off the coast. In 1922, army pilot Charles F. Webber's DeHavilland biplane went missing over Cuyamaca Rancho State Park. In 1978, Pacific Southwest Airlines Flight 178 collided midair over San Diego and crashed in the residential North Park neighborhood, claiming the lives of 144 people in what was the worst airline disaster of the era. Author and aircraft accident research specialist G. Pat Macha recounts these and other stories of astonishing survival, heroism and heartbreaking fatality.
Ebook
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The Great Crescenta Valley Flood: New Year's Day 1934
by Art Cobery
Part of the Disaster series
As Crescenta Valley residents gathered to ring in the 1934 New Year, a cloudburst broke over Southern California's San Gabriel Mountains, unleashing a deluge on mountainsides denuded by recent fires. A roaring wall of rocks, mud and water crashed down the canyons, uprooting trees, tossing boulders and automobiles like toys and carving a path of destruction. Using painstaking research and heart-rending firsthand accounts, historian Art Cobery paints a picture of survival and redemption in the face of natural disaster, including the heroic efforts of eleven-year-old Marcie Warfield to save her father and younger brother, the devastating debris flow that claimed the lives of refugees and aid workers at the American Legion Hall and the selfless acts of neighbors caught in the storm of events.
Ebook
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The Wyoming Bomber Crash of 1943
by Sylvia A. Bruner
Part of the Disaster series
Bomber Mountain's Namesake Tragedy
June 1943 saw forty-one heavy bombers lost within the continental United States, including a B-17 that went missing over Wyoming late during the night of June 28. That aircraft had ten young men on board destined for World War II. They had been ordered overseas to participate in the intense and constant bombing raids being conducted in Europe, but they never made it out of America. Two years later, area cowboys discovered the wreckage strewn across an otherwise picturesque landscape. U.S. Air Corps Captain Kenneth G. Hamm noted in his personal diary, "The plane was so completely demolished that we were almost on top of it before we saw it." Author Sylvia A. Bruner shares the stories of the men who lost their lives deep in the Bighorn Mountains and recounts the events of the crash, search and U.S. Air Corps accident investigation.
Ebook
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Historic Shipwrecks of Coastside California
by Joann Semones
Part of the Disaster series
The stretch of California coast from San Francisco to Monterey has seen its share of disastrous shipwrecks with devastating losses, but there are also stories of courage, innovative rescues and unique salvage operations. Uncover the tale of the adventurous, ill-fated Sir John Franklin, now marked only by a nearly forgotten cemetery, and relive the wreck of the New York, one of the most notorious ships to ever sail. Learn about the Coastside's worst maritime tragedy, when the passenger steamship San Juan was struck by the oil tanker twice her size and sank in minutes, plunging seventy-five men, women and children into the sea. Join author JoAnn Semones as she shares the stories of doomed ships that found their end along Coastside California.
Ebook
(1)
The Millfield Mine Disaster
by Ron W. Luce
Part of the Disaster series
On Wednesday, November 5, 1930, Sunday Creek Coal Company Mine #6 at Millfield became the unenviable site of Ohio's worst coal mining disaster. Negligence caused an electrical spark to ignite accumulated methane and detonated untreated explosive dust. Within minutes 82 men were dead, 56 women became widows and 137 dependents found themselves fatherless. Approximately 120 men not in the direct line of blast and flame escaped. Miraculously, 19 others were found barely alive many hours after all were presumed dead. The tragedy could have been prevented if proper procedures had been followed and profit not put before worker safety. Author Ron Luce brings all of the facts together for the first time to tell the story of the Millfield Mine Disaster in full detail.
Ebook
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Cape Cod and the Portland Gale of 1898
by Donald Wilding
Part of the Disaster series
On the night of November 26, 1898, with a killer storm of historic proportions approaching, the steamer Portland set out from Boston. By the following night, the winter hurricane sent the vessel to the depths of Massachusetts Bay off Cape Cod, claiming nearly two hundred lives. On the Cape, a few dozen victims of the Portland disaster washed ashore, while ships piled up in harbors, high tides swept away railroad tracks, and the landscape and beaches were changed forever. Several Cape Cod mariners went to sea and never returned, caught in the gale's evil clutches. Local author Don Wilding revisits this disaster and the heroic deeds of the U.S. Life-Saving Service and the Cape's citizenry in what came to be known as "The Portland Gale."
Ebook
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The Nebraska Winter of 1948-49
Stories of Survival
by Barry Seegebarth
Part of the Disaster series
In 1948-49, Nebraska experienced a winter like never before. Brutal cold, unbearable winds and record snowfall made roads impassable and life difficult for locals. Farmers and ranchers struggled with hunger due to a dwindling supply of coal and food. The governor requested federal aid, and the U.S. Air Force dropped bales of hay into pastures for animals. Many locals perished in the weather, and icy roads forced the state to redesign and rebuild highways. Author Barry Seegebarth details the tragedy and courage of the Nebraska winter of 1948.
Ebook
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Yellow Fever on Galveston Island
by Jan Johnson
Part of the Disaster series
Jan Johnson provides a definitive account of Galveston's fight against outbreaks of Yellow Fever, which transformed an island paradise into the City of Dreadful Death.
In the summer of Galveston's founding year, a mysterious malady accompanied by black vomit descended upon the inhabitants. Names for the devastating plague came quick and fast as the body count rose. Saffron Scourge. Bronze John. Yellow Jack. Yellow Fever. The disease's cause and cure remained elusive, as did the medical institutions Galveston would need treat the illness. Four thousand souls perished in nine epidemics between 1839 and 1867. By the time of Galveston's final Yellow Fever outbreak in 1903, however, residents were better informed and equipped. Discover the key figures and pivotal events of the island city's experience with the mosquito-borne disease.
Ebook
(1)
The Tragic Sinking of Gloucester's Patriot
by Captain W. Russell Webster, USCG (Ret.)
Part of the Disaster series
On the evening of January 2, 2009, Captain Matteo Russo and crewman John Orlando got underway aboard the fifty-four-foot fishing vessel Patriot, from the iconic State Pier in Gloucester, Massachusetts, bound for nearby fishing grounds in search of cod. They never returned.
What happened less than eight hours later on that bitter and dark winter early morning that caused the Patriot to sink? Why did the Coast Guard deliberate more than two hours before launching a rescue mission? Using official documents, numerous interviews and insight as a search and rescue commander, maritime historian Captain W. Russell Webster, USCG (Ret.), expertly documents the tragedy of the Patriot, with startling findings. He deftly explores the condition of "normalcy bias" linked to this heartbreaking case, which can cause people-including Coast Guard personnel-to deny and sometimes over-deliberate threats to human life.
Ebook
(5)
The 1959 Yellowstone Earthquake
by Larry E. Morris
Part of the Disaster series
Experience the epic earthquake that shook up Yellowstone and the rescue effort that ensued.
At 11:37 p.m. on August 17, 1959, a magnitude 7.5 earthquake rocked Montana's Yellowstone country. In an instant, an entire mountainside fractured and thundered down onto the sites of unsuspecting campers. The mammoth avalanche generated hurricane-force winds ahead of it that ripped clothing from backs and heaved tidal waves in both directions of the Madison River Canyon. More than two hundred vacationers trapped in the canyon feared the dam upstream would burst. As debris and flooding overwhelmed the river, injured victims frantically searched the darkness for friends and family. Acclaimed historian Larry Morris tells the gripping minute-by-minute saga of the survivors who endured the interminable night, the first responders who risked their lives and the families who waited days and weeks for word of their missing loved ones.
Ebook
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The Great Virginia Flood of 1870
by Paula F. Green
Part of the Disaster series
In the fall of 1870, a massive flood engulfed parts of Virginia, West Virginia and Maryland. What began near Charlottesville as welcome rain at the end of a drought-plagued summer quickly turned into a downpour as it moved west and then north through the Shenandoah Valley. The James, Shenandoah and Potomac Rivers rose, and flooding washed out fields, farms and entire towns. The impact was immense in terms of destruction, casualties and depth of water. The only warning that Richmond, downriver from the worst of the storm, had of the wall of water bearing down on it was a telegram. In this account, public historian Paula Green details not only the flood but also the process of recovery in an era before modern relief programs.
Ebook
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The Whiskey Row Fire of 1900
by Bradley G. Courtney
Part of the Disaster series
A fire of frightening magnitude was not a question of "if" but "when" in young Prescott, and on July 14, 1900, the feared conflagration found its spark. After several years of drought, a candle slipping from its holder was all it took to utterly destroy Prescott's business district, red-light district and famous Whiskey Row. People grabbed what they could to rescue it from the flames, but the party didn't stop. Even the piano from one saloon was moved to a new location, and people continued to play. Author Bradley Courtney explores the conditions leading up to the disaster, the surprising details of its effects and the amazing recovery that shapes the town today.
Ebook
(1)
Historic Disasters of East Tennessee
by Dewaine A. Speaks
Part of the Disaster series
For more than 150 years, East Tennesseans have experienced disasters of historic proportions. The 1902 Fraterville Mine explosion took the lives of 216 men and boys. A 1904 head-on passenger train wreck in New Market claimed the lives of 64. In 1906, Jellico was practically destroyed by the explosion of a train car loaded with dynamite. Floodwaters near Rockwood in 1929 took the lives of 7 Boy Scouts and their Scoutmaster. An explosion in 1960 at Kingsport's Eastman plant killed 16 workers and injured 400. In 2016, a fire in the Great Smoky Mountains claimed the lives of 14 while destroying 2,460 buildings. Knoxville author Dewaine Speaks chronicles these and other historic tragedies in East Tennessee.
Ebook
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The 1913 McKinney Store Collapse
by Carol O'keefe Wilson
Part of the Disaster series
A powerful vibration, a deafening noise and a swell of thick dust brought residents of McKinney pouring into the public square on the afternoon of January 23, 1913. What they saw was horrifying--an entire building had collapsed, demolishing two popular retailers, the Cheeves Mississippi Store and Tingle Implement Store. Their contents, including many shoppers and clerks, spilled out into the streets, where layer upon layer of debris settled into a massive, ragged pile. In spite of a herculean rescue effort, eight people perished. Carol Wilson sifts through the disaster and its aftermath, dredging up some troubling facts about how the tragedy might have been prevented.
Ebook
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The Brockton Tragedy at Moosehead Lake
by James E. Benson
Part of the Disaster series
On May 13, 1928, ten prominent men of Brockton, Massachusetts, headed off on a fishing trip to Moosehead Lake in Maine. After traveling fourteen hours, the group met Maine guide Samuel Budden and boarded the Mac II for the final voyage to their destination. Approximately six miles from the Tomhegan sporting camp, the boat took on water in rough seas and sank, taking Budden and all but one of the adventurers to a watery grave. Jim Benson and Nicole Casper chronicle this horrific tragedy and its legacy in two New England communities.
Ebook
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Historic Disasters in Southeast Minnesota
by Steve Gardiner
Part of the Disaster series
Southeast Minnesota has regularly felt the wrath of nature.
In 1890, a driving straight-line wind on Lake Pepin overturned the Sea Wing, killing ninety-eight people within minutes in the worst marine tragedy in Minnesota history. In 1940, a raging blizzard trapped duck hunters on islands in the Mississippi River and left motorists stranded across the region, leaving dozens injured or dead. Then, in 1965, flood waters of the Mississippi River and its vast network of tributaries kept area residents in fear for two months, shattering records for high water marks and destroying buildings and farmlands before receding and leaving behind damage that took years to rebuild.
Local author Steve Gardiner examines these powerful natural disasters and their ramifications on the people of Southeast Minnesota.
Ebook
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Connecticut River Valley Flood of 1936
by Joshua Shanley
Part of the Disaster series
In the beginning of the twentieth-century, the Connecticut River Valley was a thriving manufacturing hub for fabric, arms and brass. But early in the spring of 1936, nearly two feet of rain created havoc on a massive scale, killing more than one hundred people and leaving tens of thousands homeless, unemployed and without power for weeks. Patrols were conducted in rowboats on city streets. Typhoid and other public health issues complicated recovery efforts. Adjusted for today's standard, damage estimates exceeded $9 billion, and the flood helped launch FDR's Flood Control Act of 1936. Dams, reservoirs, and dikes were constructed to control future flooding. Much of that system now remains in place but has gone largely unmaintained. Author Josh Shanley recounts the greatest flood in New England history and examines the potential for future floods.
Ebook
(3)
The Strand Theatre Fire
The 1941 Brockton Tragedy and the Fallen Thirteen
by James E. Benson
Part of the Disaster series
On March 10, 1941, at 12:38 a.m., the Brockton Fire Department responded to Fire Alarm Box 1311, which was pulled for a fire at the Strand Theatre. Fire Alarm dispatched the deputy chief, three engine companies, a ladder company and Squad A. Within six minutes, a second alarm was struck. Less than one hour after the first alarm, the roof of the Strand collapsed, and what appeared to be a routine fire turned into a disaster that killed thirteen firefighters and injured more than twenty others. The disaster marks one of the largest losses of life to firefighters from a burning building collapse in the United States. Jim Benson and Nicole Casper chronicle this devastating tragedy and celebrate the community's heroes and resilience in the face of adversity.
Ebook
(2)
Colorado's Deadliest Floods
by Darla Sue Dollman
Part of the Disaster series
Ranked among the top ten states for both disasters and dry climate, Colorado has a long history of extreme weather. On May 19, 1864, residents of the fledgling gold rush town of Denver awoke to a wall of water slamming into the city with enough force to flatten buildings and rip clothing from its victims. The infamous Big Thompson Canyon flood of 1976 killed 144 residents, tourists and campers. Per the National Center for Atmospheric Research, Coloradoans experienced twenty-two floods with contemporary monetary losses of $2 million or more since the flood of 1864. And as the population continues to grow, the loss of lives, property, crops and livestock may increase. Local author Darla Sue Dollman, who witnessed and survived many of the contemporary disasters, examines the state's most catastrophic flash floods from 1864 to 2013.
Ebook
(2)
Historic Aircraft Wrecks of Los Angeles County
by G. Pat Macha
Part of the Disaster series
A century of aviation research and military flights over Los Angeles County has left the San Gabriel Mountains, Mojave Desert and the near-shore Pacific Ocean strewn with more than 1,500 aircraft crash sites. Barnstormers and test pilots too often made unexpected final landings. Accidents occurred on a nearly daily basis during World War II training maneuvers. Private planes, a sign of 1950s prosperity, also met tragic ends. These epic incidents include the 1971 tragedy of Flight 706 in which an airliner collided with a marine fighter jet above Mount Bliss, killing fifty people. Renowned aircraft crash search specialist G. Pat Macha recounts dozens of sorrowful, triumphant and surprising true stories of those who lived through these ordeals while offering touching tributes to those who did not.
Ebook
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Born From Disaster
by Erine Mendy
Part of the Disaster series
Reina is a young woman who spent 21 years clueless about this other world, this other her. She discovers that she possesses extraordinary powers on her birthday, which marks her last day of peace. Shielded from the truth since the beginning of her life, Reina is initially conflicted and hesitant to embrace her abilities. She faces the revelation of her true identity as she navigates a new world filled with dangerous monsters, ancient prophecies, and hidden secrets.
While Reina's path is primarily solitary, her new life will call for new acquaintances, perhaps bonds. Reina embarks on a quest to fulfill her destiny, forcing her to confront her weaknesses and embrace her true potential.
As Reina delves deeper into the mysteries of her past and the powers within her, she realizes that her role is different than what she was promised. From University to Academy, she always had a choice. But when fates twist and turn, will she be prepared to handle it?
"Born from Disaster" is a tale of magic, adventure, and self-discovery, exploring the themes of identity, emotions, and responsibility. On her journey across the realms, she wrestles with destiny, confronts darkness, and discovers what it means to truly belong.
Ebook
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The Cedar Keys Hurricane of 1896
Disaster at Dawn
by Alvin F. Oickle
Part of the Disaster series
The destruction was beyond belief. Families watched in horror as walls of water swept away homes and businesses, and men held onto saplings for their very lives while the winds howled. Buildings on Atsena Otie were swept away so completely that only cracked stone foundations remained, and the forests of red cedar that gave the islands their name and livelihood were flattened. Resulting in dozens of deaths and millions of dollars in damage, Hurricane Number 4 in 1896 changed the Cedar Keys forever and set the city on a path to the present. Historian Alvin F. Oickle, drawing on firsthand accounts and extensive archival research, tells the story of ordinary Floridians who were faced, like so many before and so many since, with nature's fury.
Ebook
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Rhode Island Disasters
Tales of Tragedy by Air, Sea and Rail
by Jim Ignasher
Part of the Disaster series
How could a perfectly sound U.S. military fighter plane simply vanish from formation on a training flight? Why did the crew of a speeding train choose death over salvation? What really happened one foggy night in 1929 when the Coast Guard fired on a rumrunner in Narragansett Bay? Do guardian angels really exist? Can an airplane be jinxed? In his latest book, Jim Ignasher chronicles twenty-three long-forgotten tales of disaster in the Ocean State. His research includes declassified government reports, which allow for some stories to be told in their entirety for the first time. Collectively, these tales present heroes and villains, adventure and the human condition, strange happenings and unsolved mysteries.
Ebook
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Shipwrecks of the Delaware Coast
Tales of Pirates, Squalls and Treasure
by Pam George
Part of the Disaster series
Under the hot summer sun, vacationers stroll the Rehoboth Beach boardwalk, chewing saltwater taffy and listening to the gulls raucous cackle. Few realize that under the sparkling water rests a graveyard. Horrific nor'easters, treacherous shoals and simple human error caused the demise of countless ships, giving birth to legends of treasure and terror. There is the De Braak, rumored to hold millions of dollars in gold; the Mohawk, which burned like a torch in the Delaware Bay; and the vessels that fell victim to the Great White Hurricane, which froze dead men to the mast. Journey with local author Pam George as she deftly picks her way through the history of Delaware's most intriguing and mysterious shipwrecks.
Ebook
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Historic Storms of Cape Cod
by Don Wilding
Part of the Disaster series
Cape Cod has always been in the path of deadly hurricanes and ferocious storms. Unwelcome summer visitors include the "Long Island Express" Hurricane of 1938, the Great Atlantic Hurricane of 1944, the twin Hurricanes Carol and Edna in 1954, and Hurricane Bob in 1991. These storms destroyed countless homes and left several coastal communities under several feet of water. Surging tides carried away houses with residents inside who didn't survive and sank the Coast Guard lightship Vineyard in Buzzards Bay, killing all 12 crew members. Fall and winter brought the benchmark Blizzard of 1978, the nor'easter of January 1987, and the infamous "Perfect Storm" of October 1991 which delivered some of the highest tides ever seen on the Outer Cape. Local author Don Wilding revisits the Cape's most severe weather events and their devastating impact.
Ebook
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Disaster Off Martha's Vineyard
The Sinking Of The City Of Columbus
by Thomas Dresser
Part of the Disaster series
With its rocky coast and treacherous shoals, shipwrecks were a common occurrence in nineteenth-century Massachusetts. Few claimed as many lives as the City of Columbus. The night was clear and the route familiar for Captain Schuyler Wright and his experienced crew as they sailed a ship equipped with the latest technology. Yet with all this, the City of Columbus went down with 103 souls. Over a century later, Eric Takakjian and the Quest Marine Services team located the wreckage of the City of Columbus on the north ledge of the Devil's Bridge, off the southern tip of Gay Head. Historian Thomas Dresser takes us into the icy waters of the Atlantic as he recounts the terrible chain of events that led to disaster on that fateful night.
Ebook
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Explosion at Morgan
The World War I Middlesex Munitions Disaster
by Randall Gabrielan
Part of the Disaster series
While World War I raged in Europe, America scrambled to supply the Allies with ammunition, and several munitions plants were constructed near the Jersey Shore. The hastily built plants hummed with hardly a mishap until the fateful night of October 4, 1918, when a series of explosions killed one hundred people. Firemen and other volunteers were powerless to stop the destruction as it devastated the Morgan-South Amboy area and terrified the surrounding region. Strangely, though, this woeful disaster has been forgotten by history. New Jersey historian Randall Gabrielan re-creates this terrifying night and its aftermath in the context of Middlesex County's role in the Great War.
Ebook
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The Airship ROMA Disaster in Hampton Roads
by Nancy E. Sheppard
Part of the Disaster series
In March 1921, Major John G. Thornell and his crew were detailed to Italy to procure a new experimental airship for the United States Army Air Service. Stationed at Langley Field in Hampton, the ROMA never lived up to expectations, despite being heralded as the future of military innovation. Tragically, it crashed and erupted in a ball of fire in 1922, claiming the lives of thirty-four of the brave men aboard. Author Nancy E. Sheppard reveals the forgotten, harrowing story of one of the last great airships and those who sacrificed for the promise of a new era in aviation.
Ebook
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Shipwrecks of Massachusetts Bay
by Thomas Hall
Part of the Disaster series
Massachusetts Bay stretches along the rocky coast and dangerously sandy shoals from Cape Ann to Cape Cod and gives the Bay State its distinctive shape and the Atlantic Ocean one of its largest graveyards. Author and longtime diver Thomas Hall guides us through the history of eight dreadful wrecks as we navigate around Mass Bay. Learn the sorrowful fate of the Portland and its crew during the devastating Portland Gale of 1898, how the City of Salisbury went down with its load of exotic zoo animals in the shadow of Graves Light and how the Forest Queen lost its precious cargo in a nor'easter. Hall provides updated research for each shipwreck, as well as insights into the technology, ship design and weather conditions unique to each wreck.
Ebook
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Shipwrecks of Stellwagen Bank
Disaster in New England's National Marine Sanctuary
by Matthew Lawrence
Part of the Disaster series
Beneath the churning surface of Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary rest the bones of shipwrecks and sailors alike. Massachusetts' ports connected its citizens to the world, and the number of merchant and fishing vessels grew alongside the nation's development. Hundreds of ships sank on the trade routes and fishing grounds between Cape Cod and Cape Ann. Their stories are waiting to be uncovered--from the ill-fated steamship Portland to collided schooners Frank A. Palmer and Louise B. Crary and the burned dragger Joffre. Join historian John Galluzzo and maritime archaeologists Matthew Lawrence and Deborah Marx as they dive in to investigate the sunken vessels and captivating history of New England's only national marine sanctuary.
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Island in the Storm
Sullivan's Island and Hurricane Hugo
by Jamie W. Moore
Part of the Disaster series
On the night of September 21, 1989, Hurricane Hugo slammed into the South Carolina coast at Sullivan's Island--north of Charleston--with winds exceeding 160 miles per hour. The colossal force of the hurricane was punctuated by storm surges ranging from five to ten feet above sea level. At approximately one minute after midnight, Hugo's eye passed over the island, and the charming community oceanside community disappeared beneath the tumultuous sea for nearly an hour. After Hugo left Sullivan's Island in its furious wake, the first news broadcasts from the Charleston area reported that the island and neighboring Isle of Palms were completely destroyed. The Ben Sawyer Bridge--the only connection to the island at the time--was knocked off its pedestal and rendered useless, and so the hundreds of families who had evacuated the area could not return to their homes to see what, if anything, remained. The recovery process started slowly, and for many it would be a long, arduous journey. Island in the Storm, by local historians Jamie and Dorothy Moore, documents in vivid detail the devastation, loss and eventual rebuilding of this beloved island community. More than fifteen years later, Sullivan's Island's homes and businesses have been restored, but the memory of Hugo's fury will not soon be forgotten.
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Terror Over Elizabeth, New Jersey
Three Plane Crashes in 58 Days and the Fight for Newark Airport
by Peter Zablocki
Part of the Disaster series
With safety protocols in their infancy and the jet engine still in development, early commercial flight above American cities was too often deadly. Between December 1951 and January 1952, three separate plane crashes barreled down onto Elizabeth, New Jersey. Many dozens perished as the crashes destroyed entire city blocks and wreaked havoc throughout various neighborhoods. Frightened residents turned to the nearby Newark Airport for blame as a groundswell of political pushback occurred in an ultimately unsuccessful bid to stop the airport's expansion. President Truman formed an airport safety commission in response that recommended better zoning around airports and runways. Author Peter Zablocki tells the harrowing story of one of the most unique and tragic series of plane crashes in the nation's history.
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Disastrous Floods and the Demise of Steel in Johnstown
by Pat Farabaugh
Part of the Disaster series
Johnstown is synonymous with floodwaters and steel. When the city was decimated by a flood of biblical proportions in 1889, it was considered one of the worst natural disasters in American history and gained global attention. Sadly, that deluge was only the first of three major floods to claim lives and wreak havoc in the region. The destruction in the wake of the St. Patrick's Day flood in 1936 was the impetus for groundbreaking federal and local flood control measures. Multiple dam failures, including the Laurel Run Dam in July 1977, left a flooded Johnstown with a failing steel industry in ruins. Author Pat Farabaugh charts the harrowing history of Johnstown's great floods and the effects on its economic lifeblood.
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When the Levee Breaks
Memphis and the Mississippi Valley Flood of 1927
by Patrick O'Daniel
Part of the Disaster series
Among the countless miles of damage caused by the Mississippi Flood of 1927, the homeless and displaced masses of the Mississippi Valley looked toward Memphis as a beacon of hope. As thousands of refugees poured into the city, Memphians opened their hearts and extolled feats of charity that could fill volumes. Join local author Patrick O'Daniel as he traces the events of the Great Mississippi Flood of 1927 and the crucial role Memphis played in its aftermath. From heroic rescues to maltreatment within the refugee camps, O'Daniel paints a complete picture of man struggling against nature both within and without. Follow along as the receding waters propel Herbert Hoover into the national spotlight and Mayor Rowlett Paine becomes an unlikely leader.
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The Hulett Hotel Fire on Lake George
by George T. Kapusinski
Part of the Disaster series
Few resorts could have boasted the kind of history that the Huletts Hotel had. Built in Huletts Landing, NY, on Lake George, the first hotel burned in 1915, and this arson was the subject of a sensational Upstate New York trial. Capitalizing on the notoriety that this trial created, the Eichler family rebuilt, only to again lose the hotel, this time it in a scandalous tax dispute in 1958. This book is about the burning of the first hotel, ensuing arson trials, rebuilding, the glory days of Huletts (when people like Amelia Earhart and Kennedy family members were frequent visitors), and the untimely closing of the second hotel. A second mystery surrounds 20 photographs of the original hotel taken in 1916, which were recently uncovered taped to the back of a painting of Abraham Lincoln. Kapusinski will use that story to unravel the other mysteries surrounding this lost hotel.
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Hurricane Agnes in Virginia
by Earnie Porta
Part of the Disaster series
"The greatest natural disaster of all time" That's how observers at the time viewed Agnes. When the storm arrived in Virginia in June of 1972 it largely spared coastal areas. With modest wind speeds, Agnes no longer registered as a hurricane as it crossed the Old Dominion. Yet its prodigious rainfall combined with saturated ground and topography to create massive floodwaters. Its impact on communities large and small was immense. Learn of the struggles of those affected, the efforts of responders, and the larger role Agnes played in the national discussion of disasters and their aftermath. /Local historian Dr. Earnie Porta describes the complex history of hurricanes and details the devastating path of Agnes through Virginia.