TSUNAMIS
STORIES FROM ARMY.MIL
CASE STUDY - 1963 VaJont Dam Disaster
VIDEO: "Vajont Dam Disaster Remembered" by U.S. Army Southern European Task Force, Africa. In the 1960s, a catastrophic landslide fell into the Vajont Reservoir, triggering a mega-tsunami that flooded the Piave Valley below. Five villages - Longarone, Pirago, Rivalta, Villanova and Faè were destroyed and nearly 2,000 lives were lost. “The first rescuer I saw came with a U.S. Army helicopter,” said Giovanni De Lorenzi, Vajont Foundation Director and disaster survivor. “Those three helicopters evacuated all 486 people from my village. Even if it was a tragic day, I remember it with joy because those U.S. helicopters saved us.” Just as they did in 1963, U.S. Army Southern European Task Force, Africa still stands ready as a crisis-response force.
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