Vanport Flood

The Vanport Flood occurred on May 30, 1948, in Vanport, Oregon, a city built during World War II to house shipyard workers. Heavy rains caused the Columbia River to overflow its banks, breaching dikes and flooding the city. The flood destroyed thousands of homes and displaced about 18,000 residents, many of whom were African American and low-income workers. Despite efforts to rescue residents, Vanport was largely submerged, and the city was never rebuilt, making it one of the largest and most devastating urban floods in Oregon's history.