Hurricane Hazel Overturns Boats, Planes, and Cars in 1954

Hurricane Hazel swept through Tompkins County and all of Western New York in October of 1954, leaving a death toll of over 20 in New York state alone. In addition to the lives lost, many buildings and homes suffered extensive damage. An airplane at the East Hill Airport was even turned over. Other local damages included a parked car crushed by a falling tree, a roof blown off a milk house, fallen telegraph poles, and blown out windows.

Some folks in Tompkins County still managed to find the positives in this great tragedy, with one family who needed a tree removed from their yard crediting the hurricane for saving them $200 dollars for tree removal services (cred. Ithaca Journal). There was also a baby girl born in the Tompkins County hospital during the middle of the storm. The power at the hospital went out briefly, but thankfully the lights came back on, and the birth appears to have been a success, (though this is not verifiable due to lack of newspaper coverage on this event).

After ravaging New York State, Hazel would go on to Ontario and Quebec where it caused massive flooding in the Humber River, Holland Marsh, and Etobicoke Creek areas, causing major damage everywhere it landed. Hazel remains one of the devastating hurricanes to ever hit the Eastern United States, and the name "Hazel" has been officially retired as a storm name due to the extent of the destruction the 1954 storm caused.

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IMAGE 1: Plane overturned at East Hill Airport. Ithaca Journal Archives 1954.

IMAGE 2: House Debris at N. Geneva St in Ithaca. Ithaca Journal Archives 1954.

IMAGE 3: Wrecked Motorboat on East Shore of Cayuga Lake. Ithaca Journal Archives 1954.

IMAGE 4: Car on top of house - Osmun Place. Ithaca Journal Archives 1954.

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