09/03/2026
As the first rain of the season hits, it seems only fitting to remember the Columbus Day storm of 1963.
with Katz Moffitt Gary's "Some History of Ten Mile Lakes"
On that day, everything was usual...gray skies. As the school, the third grade had memorized "In 1492 Columbus sailed the ocean blue," to Mrs. Wilder's delight....construction paper ships--the Nina, Pinta and Santa Maria too, covered the big windows facing the gym. The wind was blowing hard outside. It battered the flag in front of the building, the metal cleat clanging against the pole like an alarm.
Shortly before noon parents were called to take their children home before the storm hit. Report were there would be extremely high winds and rain.
Already tree limbs were strewn on the road, a power line across North Lake Road at 9th Street intersection had broken. It lay across the road, whipping like a snake, popping and spewing sparks across the road.
From our living room we watched the storm progress. The sky darkened and rain began to pour. The power went out and candles were readied for nightfall. More and more trees were going down, all along the coast. Roads between Crescent City and Newport became impassable and many travelers were left stranded between fallen debris roadblocks.
The peak of the storm came with vengeance. Gusts of wind and rain poured from a black sky and flooded streets.
