‘Flooding at disaster level’: flood of 1974 submerged city under several feet of water
Local resident Jack Parker kept several pages of newspapers from April 1974 showing a disaster-level spring meltwater flood that will hopefully never repeat itself.
Moose Jaw resident Jack Parker said he can’t be completely sure that the flood of ’74 was the worst ever – however, it is certainly the worst he remembers.
Parker remembered a woman on the sidewalk outside a small Chinese restaurant on High Street trying to sweep floodwater away from her storefront. Her frustrated efforts were memorable because the water was almost to her knees.
The April 19, 1974 Moose Jaw Times-Herald ran the headline “Flooding at disaster level and worse still to come.”
The first paragraph of the story says that “A disaster area is the only way to describe Moose Jaw this morning as a major portion of the city lies under several feet of dirty water”.
Premier at the time Allen Blakeney and environmental minister Neil Byers came to the city in response to a request from the mayor to declare a disaster area. The mayor in 1974 was Herb E. Taylor.
Taylor wanted the province to provide financial help to Moose Jaw and to the many victims of the disaster.
Another story from Times-Herald paper describes the local citizens band (CB) radio club frantically responding to calls for help and evacuation from the worst-hit parts of the city.
Manitoba, River, High, and Fairford Streets needed the most help. Members of the club used trucks and boats to help residents evacuate, and complained that sightseers were getting in the way of their efforts.
Parker recalled forcing open a door at the insurance adjusters office he worked at. It was difficult because the water outside the door was over a foot higher (~30 cm) than inside the building.
One claim he investigated during the flood was for damage to a car. Large beams of wood from a nearby lumber yard had floated over to rest on the car. As the water slowly receded, the lumber crushed the vehicle’s roof.
Parker’s memories and the Times-Herald’s pictures and articles are a reminder that the lake-like meltwater puddles created by this past week’s warm temperatures are minor in the historical context.
Moose Jaw’s infrastructure has been adapted in the 48 years since – another flood on that scale would be the kind of adventure no one wants to personally experience.