OPINION: History behind ’76 Idaho dam disaster can still giv…

I was living in Caldwell then, but a year after the flood I traveled to the dam site and the hard-hit communities. My strongest impressions were both of how sweeping the flood had been — in some places, you could see all soil had been scraped by the water — but also the speed of reconstruction. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, in particular, poured enormous resources into helping the area recover, and it worked. Today, little evidence of the flood remains.

For all that success, the wreckage of those days shouldn’t be minimized. In his book, “Idaho for the Curious,” Cort Conley quoted some doggerel from a man who lived in the area then: “If I sound a little bitter, it’s for certain that I am; because right now the Upper Valley isn’t worth a Teton Dam.”

And why should this echo from 50 years ago be a story to ponder today?

This year, all of Idaho either is in or soon faces severe drought. The national water maps developed for the state look drier overall than I can recall seeing them in decades.

When that hits, people in need of water will go looking for answers. And sometimes the obvious answer isn’t the best one.

There aren’t any very easy answers. History tells us as much.

Stapilus, of Carlton, Ore., is a former Idaho newspaper reporter and editor whose writings may be found at ridenbaugh.com and stapilus.substack.com. He may be contacted at stapilus@ridenbaugh.com.