Wednesday, June 5, 2024, marked the 48th anniversary of the disastrous flood that occurred when the Teton Dam failed.

Longtime community members in the Upper Valley shared their most memorable experiences from that time with the Rexburg Standard Journal.

Frances Murphy shared how she decided to go take a look at the dam herself that morning with her boyfriend after hearing commotion about the dam on the radio.

“Being young and ‘immortal’, my boyfriend and I decided to drive up to the dam to see what was going on,” Murphy said. “When we got to the dam, the access road was blocked.”

A police officer at the access road told them the dam had just completely breached, meaning they could not return to Rexburg the way they came.

“We flew to town through the dry farms,” Murphy said. “We got back just in time for me to ... head for my parents’ house on the hill.”

Once on the hill, Murphy watched through binoculars as the water made its way through the valley.

“There were cattle and horses running ahead of the water and we watched in horror as they were swallowed up one by one,” Murphy said. “We were all terrified and so worried about our friends and family, hoping that they made it out safely.”

Murphy’s mother was an attorney who represented the Teton-Madison Irrigation District at the time and had helped move the construction of the dam forward.

“My mother ... sat in her chair looking out of the window and said over and over again that ‘It was all my fault,’” Murphy said. “She was devastated by the tragedy and she really never got over the tragedy.”

She described the night following the disaster.

“There were no lights at all, it was deathly quiet except for the mooing of the cattle that had survived the water and washed into town,” she said. “Rexburg as we knew it was totally destroyed.”

Willis Kortright shared his experience being stationed in Germany with the U.S. Army during the flood and not knowing where his dad and brother were.

“It took almost one month with the help of the Red Cross to locate them and find out they were okay,” Kortright said. “My mom passed away in November 1975. The flood water sent her vault and casket and carried it out to Hibbard.”

Anita Thompson Knapp was 11 years old at the time of the flood and lived in Hibbard.

“Me, my mom and my sister didn’t go into town to the college as people were being told to do,” Knapp said. “We didn’t believe the flood waters would reach us, so we stayed put.”

Knapp recalled that it wasn’t the best decision.

“An Army helicopter flew out to rescue us,” Knapp said. “It’s a particularly vivid memory for me and my sister.”

Nancy Wells Moulard said, “I will never forget that day as well as the days, weeks and months that followed.”

Many others shared how their families were a part of the cleanup process for months to follow.