Long before cell phones, before airplanes, before cars were the common mode of transportation, even before Titanic, there was the great avalanche of 1910 in Wellington, WA. Gary Krist takes the reader on an incredible journey of the facts leading up to the avalanche: the weather involved, the men who made the decisions, and the passengers on the train. Each area is crucial to the ending of this tragic event in our American history. Krist is able to tell the story truthfully while being able to make it read like a storybook. The characters come to life on the page and the struggles and feelings they all dealt with are felt by the reader.
The weather had a great deal to do with the deaths of nearly 100 people that day, but certainly responsibility also falls on the superintendent of the Wellington area, James O’Neil. Although all court decisions deemed him free of any wrong-doing, it becomes very clear that O’Neil ignored the passengers on the train that was hovering over a 1,000 foot drop. Granted he was working to clear the tracks and never rested for days at a time, but he failed to meet the basic need of his charges: reassurance. However, it was very clear by the end of the lawsuits that the railroad had learned its lesson about building track on or around mountains. They found new ways to rebuild the track with less risk to passengers, and also built structures as a means for shelter for the trains during snow season.
I have to say that I really enjoyed this book. It’s not one that I would typically pick up and read but I’m glad I had the opportunity to learn about this point in history. Gary Krist pulled me in and held my attention the entire time. I especially enjoyed reading his personal notes from his research, which are included at the end of The White Cascade. Kudos to Gary Krist on a job well done!
