Several weeks ago we took a day trip some 70 miles due West to the town of Clewiston.
Clewiston is located on the SW shore of Lake Okeechobee aka as "the Big O" or "The Lake." The Lake is some 730 square miles and contains 1 trillion gallons of fresh water. It is 1/2 the size as the state of Rhode Island. With hurricane Sandy still fresh in our minds, I wanted to see the site of the great hurricane of 1928 when over 2,500 people drown.
I also wanted to see what was done to prevent another such disaster.
The storm of 1928 came in over West Palm Beach proceeded west inland, turned North and days later fizzled out near Toronto, Canada.
It had torrential rain and winds up to 165 mph. It breeched the existing dike around the lake and flooded hundred's of miles of rich Florida farmland.
Shortly after the clean up, the government built the Herbert Hoover Dike around the lake to prevent another such calamity. That levee still stands today. There are people today who say it will not stand the force of a Category 4 hurricane. We went to take a look for ourselves. Come along with us.
The Herbert Hoover Dike built around Lake Okeechobee after the great hurricane of 1928.
Note grassless areas where the levee has been recently reenforced with rock's and boulders.
The song says,"we drove our Chevy to the levee and the levee was dry." Well, this levee was so dry they water it to keep the grass growing to hold the soil in place.
No Chevy, but our Honda on top of the levee.
Immediately, next to the levee is a canal, Lake Okeechobee is in the far distance.
A sport fishing boat returns from the lake. This area is known for its bass fishing.
We stopped at Roland and Martins for a lunch of catfish fingers and slaw.
Clewiston is also know as Sugartown. The local areas are filled with sugar cane fields.
We also stopped in the town of Pahokee where there is a large modern marina on The Lake...
A local fisherman fishing in the levee canal.
Palm Beach County is the largest country in Florida by area and the third largest by population. Most of the land between Palm Beach Gardens and Lake Okeechobee is fertile farm lands.
jpk/ckk 2/18/13
Clewiston is located on the SW shore of Lake Okeechobee aka as "the Big O" or "The Lake." The Lake is some 730 square miles and contains 1 trillion gallons of fresh water. It is 1/2 the size as the state of Rhode Island. With hurricane Sandy still fresh in our minds, I wanted to see the site of the great hurricane of 1928 when over 2,500 people drown.
I also wanted to see what was done to prevent another such disaster.
The storm of 1928 came in over West Palm Beach proceeded west inland, turned North and days later fizzled out near Toronto, Canada.
It had torrential rain and winds up to 165 mph. It breeched the existing dike around the lake and flooded hundred's of miles of rich Florida farmland.
Shortly after the clean up, the government built the Herbert Hoover Dike around the lake to prevent another such calamity. That levee still stands today. There are people today who say it will not stand the force of a Category 4 hurricane. We went to take a look for ourselves. Come along with us.
Palm Beach County is the largest country in Florida by area and the third largest by population. Most of the land between Palm Beach Gardens and Lake Okeechobee is fertile farm lands.
jpk/ckk 2/18/13
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