03/26/2018
TV meteorologist Roker (The Storm of the Century) revisits the Johnstown Flood, the 19th-century disaster that destroyed a Pennsylvania town, killed thousands, and raised questions of privilege and liability that still resonate. In the Allegheny Mountains, a poorly engineered dam holding back a lake created for an exclusive summer resort gave way on May 31, 1889, sending 20 million tons of debris-choked water hurtling into the town. Roker, with a weatherman’s eye, describes the formation of the unprecedented rainstorms that led to the flooding and the “monster unchained” that was the flood itself. He also tells the stories of locals—including Gertrude Quinn, a child who rode out the catastrophe on a floating mattress, and Victor Heiser, a teenager who helped try to save others from postflooding fires—and connects the incident to larger questions: “Sometimes,” he writes, “people do things to change the natural situation in ways that, regardless of intention, create human responsibility.” The wealthy members of the resort (among them Andrew Carnegie) didn’t mean to hurt anyone, but caused the destruction through negligence, for which they were not held legally accountable. Roker’s story is both a good yarn and a morality tale about how the powerful can avoid blame for problems caused by their privilege. (May)
Ruthless Tide: The Heroes and Villains of the Johnstown Flood, America's Astonishing Gilded Age Disaster
Narrated by Mirron Willis
Al RokerUnabridged — 8 hours, 27 minutes
Ruthless Tide: The Heroes and Villains of the Johnstown Flood, America's Astonishing Gilded Age Disaster
Narrated by Mirron Willis
Al RokerUnabridged — 8 hours, 27 minutes
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Overview
A gripping narrative history of the 1889 Johnstown Flood-the deadliest flood in US history-from New York Times bestselling author, NBC Host, and legendary weather authority Al Roker.
May 1889: After a deluge of rainfall-nearly a foot in less than twenty-four hours-swelled the Little Conemaugh River, panicked engineers watched helplessly as swiftly rising waters threatened to breach the South Fork Dam in central Pennsylvania. Though they telegraphed neighboring towns on this last morning in May, warning of the impending danger, residents, used to false alarms, remained in their homes.
At 3:10 P.M., the dam gave way, releasing*twenty million tons of water. Gathering speed as it flowed southwest, the deluge wiped out entire towns in its path and picked up debris-trees, houses, animals-before reaching Johnstown, fourteen miles downstream. Traveling*forty miles an hour, with swells as high as*sixty feet, the deadly floodwaters razed the mill town-home to 20,000 people-in minutes. The Great Flood, as it would come to be called, remains the deadliest in US history, killing more than 2,200 people and causing*seventeen million dollars*in damage.
Al Roker tells the riveting story of this tragedy, which remains one of the worst weather-related disasters in American history. Ruthless Tide follows a compelling cast of characters whose fates converged because of that*tragic day, including John Parke, the engineer whose heroic efforts failed to save the dam; Henry Clay Frick, the robber baron whose fancy sport fishing resort was responsible for modifications that weakened the structure; and Clara Barton, the founder of the American Red Cross, who spent five months in Johnstown leading one of the first organized disaster relief efforts. Weaving together their stories and those of many ordinary citizens whose lives were forever altered by the event, Roker creates a classic account of our natural world at its most terrifying.
Editorial Reviews
The Today show co-host and weatherman writes a narrative history of the 1889 Johnstown flood, the deadliest in American history, immersing himself in the weather of the past.” — New York Times Book Review (“New & Noteworthy”)
“Roker takes readers back to Pennsylvania in 1889, and the deadliest flood in American history. … A tale that involves engineering, history, manufacturing giants, and of course, the weather.” — Popular Science (”New Science Books to Read this Weekend”)
“An exciting, tragic story seasoned with sensitive social analysis and criticism.” — Kirkus, starred review
“Roker’s harrowing tale of survival and loss… reads like a nail-biting thriller.” — Library Journal, starred review
“[A] riveting account of the Johnstown Flood, which still remains the deadliest natural disaster on American soil. … [A] page-turner sure to please.” — Booklist
“Both a good yarn and a morality tale. ... Roker, with a weatherman’s eye, describes the formation of the unprecedented rainstorms that led to the flooding and the ‘monster unchained’ that was the flood itself.” — Publishers Weekly
“Vividly told. … A stirring story of an event with lasting repurcussions.” — Bookreporter.com
The Today show co-host and weatherman writes a narrative history of the 1889 Johnstown flood, the deadliest in American history, immersing himself in the weather of the past.
Roker takes readers back to Pennsylvania in 1889, and the deadliest flood in American history. … A tale that involves engineering, history, manufacturing giants, and of course, the weather.
Vividly told. … A stirring story of an event with lasting repurcussions.
[A] riveting account of the Johnstown Flood, which still remains the deadliest natural disaster on American soil. … [A] page-turner sure to please.
[A] riveting account of the Johnstown Flood, which still remains the deadliest natural disaster on American soil. … [A] page-turner sure to please.
Roker takes readers back to Pennsylvania in 1889, and the deadliest flood in American history. … A tale that involves engineering, history, manufacturing giants, and of course, the weather.
The Today show co-host and weatherman writes a narrative history of the 1889 Johnstown flood, the deadliest in American history, immersing himself in the weather of the past.
★ 2018-03-19
The ebullient weather personality from NBC's Today show returns with a flood account that is both intimate and alert to the wealth and class distinctions highlighted by the 1889 Johnstown Flood.Roker, who wrote about a 1900 hurricane (The Storm of the Century, 2015, etc.), has some sizable footsteps to follow in this one—David McCullough's 1968 The Johnstown Flood—but he fills them nicely in this fresh account of the Pennsylvania dam break that destroyed Johnstown and killed more than 2,000 people. Roker is especially adept at focusing on key individuals—residents, politicians, movers and shakers, rescue workers—and letting their stories represent the myriads of others. One harrowing tale involves the improbable rescue of a little girl in the swirling torrent that struck the town during a heavy rain when a dam, 14 miles away (and above the town), broke and sent millions of tons of water surging down into Johnstown and some small communities that lay in the torrent's path. The author is also very alert to the class issues that underlay it all. The earthen dam formed a lake for some very wealthy citizens (among them, Andrew Carnegie), who, of course, denied responsibility afterward. Roker notes that only 35 of the 60 members of this wealthy-person's club contributed to the relief fund. The author also goes into detail—sometimes too much—about some of the individuals involved: Carnegie, Clara Barton (whose Red Cross would swell in public awareness afterward), and numerous others. He points out some inconsistencies in American thought, as well—about how, for instance, we are quick to help people suffering in a natural disaster but not suffering from everyday poverty and disease. He also discusses some of the nasty anti-immigrant feelings that emerged during the cleanup.An exciting, tragic story seasoned with sensitive social analysis and criticism.
Product Details
| BN ID: | 2940173406323 |
|---|---|
| Publisher: | HarperCollins |
| Publication date: | 05/22/2018 |
| Edition description: | Unabridged |
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