A History of Devastating Floods

A History of Devastating Floods. . , On May 20, 1903, torrential rain caused the Papio Creek to overflow its banks, submerging much of Papillion. Many of the town's plank sidewalks were washed away. The flour mill was also pulled off its foundation and left sitting in the middle of Washington Street. The Papillion Times, located in the basement of the A.W. Clarke Building, sustained heavy water damage. Members of the community joined together to help pump water out of the offices. Unfortunately, many of the newspaper's archives were lost. Less than a week after the first flood, another smaller flood struck Papillion. This flood was less devastating, but it added to the damage and greatly impeded local clean-up efforts that were still underway from the first flood. , Another devastating flood hit on June 5, 1917. Heavy rains and violent winds caused an unexpected rise in the Papio Creek waters. No residents lost their lives due to the swift actions of locals; however, there were huge material losses and damages during the event. , On August 2, 1959, hail and high winds ripped through town. The next day was followed by upwards of 10 inches of heavy rain, causing the Papio Creek to flood streets. By the third day, the rains continued, and the residents knew a serious flooding event was occurring. Firefighters attempted to create a makeshift levee using sandbags, but the effort was unsuccessful. Residents living along the creek were evacuated. Before long, the south end of the Papio Creek Bridge gave way to the constant flow of swift moving creek water and debris slamming into its footings and collapsed into the creek. Stories of heroes and survival during the flood emerged. No lives were lost during this flood. Ten days after the flooding events ceased, a temporary crossing structure was built across First and Jefferson streets. It took two years to rebuild a new, more modern bridge, which was opened for traffic on August 12, 1961. , The Flood of 1964 , The worst flood in Papillion's history occurred on June 16, 1964. Large hail, ferocious winds, and several inches of rain caused the creek's waters to come all the way to the front steps of the new high school, which was on the east side of South Washington (currently the Papillion Middle School). The rapid rise of Papio Creek caught most businesses off-guard. The storm lasted nearly 12 hours, with several small tornadoes forming in the middle of the chaos. The Papillion Volunteer Fire Department used boats to rescue people trapped in the flood waters. In total, seven people along the creek lost their lives, but none of them were in Papillion. The Papio Creek bridge held firm during this flood but talks began shortly after to build a levee to mitigate future floods.