Opinion by Bill Holman, The Charlotte Observer, 16 July 2016 – One hundred years ago this month, one of the worst natural disasters in our region’s history devastated communities from Asheville to Fort Mill. The Great Flood of 1916 was the result of two hurricanes saturating the Southern Appalachian Mountains and causing the Catawba and French Broad Rivers to dramatically overflow. Landslides swept away homes, dams burst, lives were lost, railroad and highway bridges vanished, lumber and textile mills were destroyed and the Lake Wylie dam collapsed.

In addition to the tremendous rains, a rapid land use change – the loss of forested watersheds – greatly aggravated the damage.

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