Remember When?

80 YEARS AGO • JANUARY 20, 1943

THE BIG FREEZE

The town water system was among the casualties of the blizzard that struck with the breath of the Arctic through the Hell-Gate upon fair Missoula nestling on the west slope of the Rockies and then swept on up the Clarks Fork to strike Thompson Falls and beyond. On the high plains of central Montana reports come that at Havre it was 60 below. Trains were stopped reportedly because the locomotives froze up as they climbed the Great Divide.

The blizzard Saturday when it reached Thomson Falls out of the Hell-Gate was somewhat moderate, but the thermometers in this area went way down. Sunday morning all over town people experienced water pipe freeze ups.

Sunday night it was the coldest. People covered their potato sacks with old coats to keep them from freezing. Cars could hardly be started unless they were in steam heated garages. But the worst was yet to come - about four o’clock Sunday morning Mr. Bancroft at the boys dormitory noticed that the water wouldn’t run in the faucets at the school. The school superintendent and head janitor rushed to notify Mayor A.S. Ainsworth at his residence.

The alarm was spread. Everyone who had a phone was notified, Roy Hanson sent messengers and fire wardens to all homes that did not have phones to warn them not to keep their fires high in stoves where there were water coils, jackets or tank attachments, or furnace heating systems. Everyone consequently had to bank their fires or put them out entirely to avoid possible boiler explosions. Necessarily the schools were all closed Monday, and many business houses did not operate. At the Ledger the electric motors would hardly start it was so cold, the machinery would hardly operate and the ink on the presses congealed and it was impossible to turn out any satisfactory work even though we had numerous rush job hands on hand.

A big crew of men worked hard all through Sunday night and on Monday trying to thaw out the intake waters on the hill which were clogged and frozen from slush ice at the cement reservoir. Big bon fires were built to try and thaw the pipes out below ground. Irwin Luke the water superintendent did the best he could to try and break the freeze up, but the only recourse in the end was to get the power company to pump river water into the town water system to get water flowing again so people could start up their fires. In spite of the great pressure on the pumps it was difficult to get water way up on the hill to some residences. As soon as people had water the fires were started up again, and by Tuesday the town system was functioning with regular water flow.

City authorities advised all people to boil river water if used for drinking purposes, and they are asked to still continue this practice for awhile until all the river water is out of the town system. River water isn’t so bad. It has a lot of strength. The waters of the Clarks Fork drain the mineralized zones of western Montana. Our own local water is such pure mountain water that it has very little mineral content and creates a deficiency that retards teeth development in youths and adults. Old river water makes hair grow on your chest just as long as you play safe and boil it.

We all had lots of excitement. Other towns had their freeze-ups. At Plains some of the business places had to be thawed out and water flooding from breaks did some damage. They tell us too that the Capitol city Helena water system froze up. At this writing the temperature has moderated, but a wind swept snowstorm is raging that almost lows one off his feet clogging the highways and drifting a lot.