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<br />and Nevada Avenue became a lake and hundreds <br />of people were marooned with hundreds <br />of autos and cut off during the period <br />of the flood ... aggregate damage from <br />the flood is great ... the most severe <br />since 1904." (Reference 2.) <br /> <br />Years later, <br /> <br />"Torrents Rage Through Channel to Submerge <br />Upper End of City Under Layer of Mud and <br />Water, 11 <br /> <br />said the Trinidad Chronicle News leading caption of <br />April 23, 1942. The article continued, <br /> <br />.. two of the principal bridges in <br />Trinidad demolished, others undermined - <br />highways and railroad lines washed out, <br />and train and motor traffic halted in <br />all directions; telephone and other public <br />services damaged and seriously interrupted; <br />uncalculated damage to important business <br />property... the city water service system <br />sustained damage ..... (Reference 3). <br /> <br />Today, the flood of April 1942 ranks as the second <br />largest of record in Trinidad's unenviable flood history. <br /> <br />On May 19, 1955, the Purgatoire wrought disastrous <br />effects that were exceptionally severe at Trinidad <br />and nearby Starkville; early area damage estimates <br />reached as high as $4 million. Over 141 residences, <br />businesses, and public buildings were damaged, and <br />seven residences were destroyed. Major damage occurred <br />to transportation facilities, utilities, and river <br />bank protection works. Most tragic, however, was <br />that a youth of 18 and an adult woman lost their lives. <br />Considerable urban damage occurred at Starkville from <br />Raton Creek where 19 residential units, four businesses, <br />and a church were damaged. The water lines supplying <br />the town were damaged and water had to be hauled in <br />for about two months. On May 20th, the editorial <br />page of the Trinidad Chronicle News offered the following <br />thought-provoking commentary: <br /> <br />9 <br />