Dam bill making progress on the Hill

The U.S. Senate Committee on Energy & Natural Resources voted unanimously to approve a bill introduced by Rep. Steve Knight, R-Palmdale, to memorialize the St. Francis Dam disaster.

The St. Francis Dam Disaster National Memorial Act, H.R. 2156, unanimously passed the House of Representatives in July of 2017 and would create a national memorial at the site of the 1928 St. Francis Dam Disaster in the San Francisquito Canyon.

The disaster, which claimed the lives of 431 people, would be memorialized through private donations to an independent foundation, the Saint Francis Dam Disaster Memorial Foundation, and the site would be on an area devastated during the ensuing flood after the dam breach.

“Memorializing the St. Francis Dam disaster is an important local priority of mine,” Knight said Wednesday. “It would preserve an important piece of history of Santa Clarita and the greater Los Angeles area.”

Knight said he appreciated the Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resource’s decision.

“The process of moving a bill through both the House and Senate can take time, but I am thankful for the attention both chambers have given to this important issue,” he said. “There are a few more hurdles ahead in getting this important legislation finalized, but progress continues to be made.”

Dan Watson/The Signal Community Hiking Club Executive Director Dianne Erskine-Hellrigel points to the remaining piece of the St. Francis Dam as she holds a copy of an old photo of the same area and the “tombstone” — the center portion of the dam that was left standing after the break on March 12, 1928.