Catastrophes and Heroes: True Stories of Man-Made Disasters

by Jerry Borrowman

Overview

A century of the industrial age saw unprecedented leaps in technology and engineering, from the first flight of an airplane to the first flight of humans to the moon. But alongside these awe-inspiring achievements were horrible disasters caused by faulty engineering or careless judgement. Catastrophes and Heroes explores eight such disasters and recognizes the unheralded heroes who stepped up to save others in times of great danger.

Included in this collection are the stories of female phone operators who, despite being in the path of destruction after the Los Angeles St. Francis Dam collapsed in 1928, stayed on the job to warn others to evacuate, Ernest Hemingway, who assisted survivors in his own boat after a hurricane destroyed the Florida East Coast Railway in 1935, and Ernest Betts who, though knowing little first aid, saved thirty people after the streamliner train The City of San Francisco crashed in the Nevada mountains in 1939.

Filled with little-known stories and historical insights, this book explores the rich history of the marvels of engineering and technological advances in the span of a century and reveals how the perils, though disastrous, gave rise to heroism and compassion at a time when machines were supposed to do it all.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781629727394
Publisher:	Shadow Mountain Publishing
Publication date:	01/05/2021
Edition description:	First Edition
Pages:	208
Product dimensions:	6.20(w) x 9.10(h) x 0.90(d)

About the Author

Jerry Borrowman is an award-winning author of historical fiction and nonfiction. He has written about the World Wars, the Great Depression, and the Vietnam War. He is the recipient of the George Washington National Medal from the Freedom Foundation at Valley Forge. He and his wife, Marcella, raised four children and live in the Rocky Mountains.
 

Table of Contents

Told in five sections:

• Historical Overview
• Fateful Choices
• Unintended Consequences
• Heroic Efforts
• Lessons Learned

Stories:

• Eight disaster stories spanning the globe and listed in chronological order:
  • 1865 – Mississippi steamboat Sultana explodes while escorting Union POWs back to the North after the war has ended
  • 1879 – Scotland’s Tay Railway Bridge collapses in a winter storm
  • 1906 – Levees built on the Colorado River fail and flood the Imperial Valley of California
  • 1928 – Muholland’s St. Francis Dam in California collapses after a landslide breaches the poor construction
  • 1935 – Florida East Coast Railway is destroyed in a hurricane
  • 1939 – Luxury Streamliner train derails in Nevada due to sabotage
  • 1940 – The Tacoma Narrows Bridge breaks apart in Washington due to faulty construction
  • 1963 – Italy’s Vajont Dam survives a landslide but the resulting wave kills thousands downstream

Each disaster will highlight stories of bravery and heroism:

• Mississippi Steamboat Sultana
  • Hosea C. Aldrich – a sergeant with the 18th Michigan Volunteer Infantry tells of his firsthand experience
  • The captain of the Steamboat BOSTONA – first to arrive on the scene
• Scotland’s Tay Railway Bridge
  • William Walker – had the premonition to trade his shift
  • Dozens of townspeople who risked their own lives to search for survivors during the storm
• Colorado Levees
  • E. H. Harriman, railroad mogul and engineer, spends his own fortune to repair the damages
• St. Francis Dam
  • Louise Gipe and the “Hello Girls” telephone operators who are in the path of the destruction stay on the phones warning others
  • Office Thornton Edwards rides his motorcycle upstream into danger, warning people in the path of the water
• Florida East Coast Railway
  • Ernest Hemingway survives the storm, then takes his own boat and begins assisting the survivors
• The City of San Francisco streamliner train
  • Train Engineer Ed Hecox survives the crash then runs a mile plus for help
  • Ernest Betts – A survivor with only the basic knowledge of First Aid, saves at least 30 fellow passengers
• The Tacoma Narrows Bridge
  • Ruby Jacox and Arthur Hagen are trapped in the middle of the bridge as it begins to collapse. They are saved by two bridge workers who risk their own lives to venture out onto the bridge.
• Italy’s Vajont Dam
  • Micaela Colletti – the 12-year old is launched a thousand feet in the air by the wave, then buried in the mud. She is rescued by the only surviving fireman.