Knoebels Flood of
2006 On June 28th 2006 heavy rain caused the two streams running
through the park to over-flow their banks. The resulting
high water caused a lot of damage and left tons of debris
behind. Knoebels quickly recovered and were open on July 1st, 2006, a mere 3 days after
several feet of flood water damaged much of the park!
Knoebels and their History with
Flooding
On June 22, 1972, the creeks that run through
Knoebels overflowed six feet over their banks, swollen
with heavy rains from Hurricane Agnes. The flood destroyed
several cottages and damaged many other buildings
including the park's roller rink. Work began on a new
building but it was later decided that the original roller
rink could be reused, and the new building under
construction became the Haunted Mansion. The roller rink
building was refloored and used as a skating rink until
the mid 1980's when it was converted into the "Roaring
Creek Saloon", which now hosts a concession stand, an
arcade and free performances. To prove that the park had
recovered from the flood, the "Haunted Mansion" dark ride
was opened in 1973. The ride has been recognized as one of
America's best dark rides by organizations such as Dark
Ride and Funhouse Enthusiasts and The National Amusement
Park Historical Association. The park again suffered
major flooding in 1975, 1977, 1996, 2004 and 2006. It has
recovered each time.
Photo Credits: Many of the photos
below are from Lawrence A. Deklinski of Ranshaw, PA.
An archive of his photos can be found
here
Others were
received in several emails circulating the internet and are
unknown as to who had snapped the photographs.
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