Storms of the Century: 1928 Palm Beach/Lake Okeechobee Hurricane ("Storm Stories" TONIGHT 10/07/04)

Weather Channel - Storm Stories ^ | 10.07.04 | Waether Channel

[RedBloodedAmerican]

Special Reports

Storms of the Century: 1928 Palm Beach/Lake Okeechobee Hurricane

1919 Keys/Corpus Christi Hurricane

1926 Miami Hurricane

1928 Palm Beach/Lake Okeechobee Hurricane

1953 Flint/Worcester Tornadoes

1954 Hurricane Hazel

1955 Hurricane Diane Floods

1957 Hurricane Audrey

1960 Hurricane Donna

1962 Pacific Northwest Big Blow
1965 Palm Sunday Tornado Outbreak
1972 Rapid City Flash Flood

1976 Big Thompson Canyon Flash Flood

1977 Johnstown Flash Flood

1978 New England Blizzard

1985 OH/PA Tornado Outbreak

1989 Hurricane Hugo

1991 Halloween "Perfect" Storm

1996 Blizzard

1999 Hurricane Floyd Floods

The 1928 Palm Beach/Lake Okeechobee Hurricane was the country's deadliest since the Galveston hurricane of 1900.

At the turn of the century, residents had too little information to realize what kind of a storm was approaching Galveston.

Even though storm prediction methods had improved by 1928, residents of Palm Beach did not know the danger Lake Okeechobee posed in a hurricane.

The hurricane of 1928 flattened buildings in Palm Beach.

Photo courtesy of the St. Petersburg Times

Many residents evacuated as the storm approached, but returned too soon only to meet the storm face to face. The hurricane moved directly over Palm Beach, but it was along the south shores of Lake Okeechobee around Belle Glade that most of the 1,836 storm victims drowned.

An earthen levee had been built around the lake to store more water for agricultural purposes. But, as the hurricane approached, the strong north winds drove shallow water to the southern end of the lake. The water rose and overran the levee, finally causing it to breach. Deep water cascaded over the villages and farmlands to the south.

The victims, mostly migrant farm workers, had insufficient time to flee as water reached as high as 25 feet. Over 200 died trying to escape.

In the 1930s a much more substantial levee was constructed around the lake. It has protected the area from all lake flooding during hurricanes since that time.

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[RedBloodedAmerican]

Related thread Flashback: The Hurricane of '28 (similar to Frances) posted 9.02.04

[RedBloodedAmerican]

Thought you folks might be interested in this piece of forgotten Florida history.

[NautiNurse]

Thanks for the ping. Will tune in tonight.

[RedBloodedAmerican]

Did I do those topics or did you change them for me?

If you did them, thank you. I didn't see those as options when I posted.

At least it's not a vanity under Breaking News on Kerry and WMD's! :o)

[RedBloodedAmerican]

bttt

[RedBloodedAmerican]

FYI

[RedBloodedAmerican]

Interesting.

I don't know what if what he is referring to as "colored town" is an actual city, but I do know that the area west of Jupiter city limits (between Jupiter and the area known as Jupiter Farms) was the area known as "colored town" when I moved there in the 1960's and it was called that because blacks were not allowed to live within city limits. If you go there today you will still see a majority of blacks living out past Limestone Road, just east of I95. And also at the time we moved there, it was on the Jupiter City Charter that blacks were not allowed to live in City limits, and they didn't. That was 1969. I guarantee that law is still on the books. Carlin White was mayor when we moved there and he lived down the street from us. When my mom had some co workers (black teachers) from Suncoast High over for dinner one night, he came over after they left and asked us to leave, which we didn't. And we were the scorn of the neighborhood, but our closest friends were blacks, not many whites.

All this to say I think the story was right about this hurricane being ignored largely because so few whites died.

I don't know about where you live, but here in Daytona the last areas to get power restored, debris picked up and any help are the poorer areas, mainly populated by minorities. And it makes no difference that we have a black mayor. She is bought by land developers and special interest groups, anyhow. Sad situation. What'd you think of it, if you got to watch it?

[PatriotGirl827]

Red Blooded - darn - I missed the show as I was out last night, but thanks for the ping, anyway. That is a sad situation you describe. Remember "The Tree" in Jupiter? I grew up in PBG and don't remember any such situation, but then again, there were really no blacks in our neighborhood at that time either (1968). They all lived in Riviera Beach, which is still predominantly Afro-American today.

[Sam Cree]

I don't know if the 1928 storm was ignored, although maybe it was in the early days.

I've known about it for many years, just read about it during the course of normal reading about hurricanes, have long known it was one of the deadliest ever.

After Andrew here in Miami, I don't think it was necessarly the poorer areas that got power restored last, rather it was the most devastated areas, because those took more extensive repair.
I even remember hearing some controversy about just because some areas had money, it didn't mean they weren't entitled to have services restored, too.

[RedBloodedAmerican]

Remember "The Tree" in Jupiter

Seems I recall that. Out west of town where they did hangings/lynchings?

Hope you get to catch a rerun of the episode. It was pretty good - they interviewed a few people that went thru it.