• At 3:45 p.m. April 23, the Trail Creek culvert intake had plugged and overflow water began pouring down Rossland Avenue.
• In less than an hour the water was knee deep over a 12-block section of downtown Trail, running fast and rising.
• Between 8:45 p.m. and 11 p.m. four holes were blasted through the Columbia River wall to allow the rampaging creek to escape into the river.
*At about the same time, Gorge Creek overflowed into the west section of the city, compounding the calamity.
• At 5:30 a.m. April 24, the Trail Creek culvert was cleared and as the flooding waters had receded 30 inches, the culvert was able to handle the full flow and the flooding stopped.
• The results: 150 damaged homes, some destroyed; 77 private cars damaged with 26 destroyed; one apartment building collapsed, a total wreck; untold damage to streets and services with 30 business premises heavily damaged and some destroyed.
Read more: Trail-Tadanac, 50 years after merge
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