The Buffalo Creek Flood and Disaster: Official Report from the Governor's Ad Hoc Commission of Inquiry

On February 26, 1972, a sludge dam on the Middle Fork of Buffalo Creek in Logan County gave way, unloosening a torrent of thick, murky water that claimed at least 118 lives, left seven persons missing, destroyed hundreds of homes, and left thousands homeless. Governor Arch Moore, Jr., on March 1, 1972, appointed an ad hoc commission to investigate the disaster, to try to find the causes and origins, to determine if conditions existed elsewhere in the state for a similar disaster, and to recommend legislative actions to prevent such disasters in the future. The Commission held 8 public hearings, interrogated 91 witnesses and compiled 9 volumes of testimony. Their report summarizes the disaster, specifying damages (in excess of $65M), listing names and ages of victims, describing dam conditions, events preceding the refuse dam failure, more. Available online.