The Sad Tale of Isaac Cline
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Hi, I'm Dave Thurlow and this is The Weather Notebook. In 1900, the US weather bureau was in its infancy. And one of its first true pioneers was a gentleman by the name of Isaac Cline. He was stationed in the growing city of Galveston Texas.

"He was alone in the water. His family was gone. He flailed his arms and reached deep underwater and kicked his legs to feel for soft things, clothing, someone alive. He felt only square shapes, planks, serrated edges. He had been inside the house; now he was outside in darkness, in wind so fast it planed the water smooth." - Excerpt from Isaac's Storm

This was a time of hubris and arrogance in America, and Cline, being caught up in these feelings too, declared that Galveston was immune to hurricanes. Here's Erik Larson, author of "Isaac's Storm" a book about Isaac Cline and the Galveston Hurricane:

"In 1891, Isaac Cline wrote something in the Galveston News, he wrote a two-page article about hurricanes, he never called them hurricanes, however, he called them tropical cyclones. To call the hurricanes was too romantic. So, he wrote this article and it's fascinating. This is where he says that no tropical cyclone can ever do serious damage to Galveston. And he goes so far as to say that anyone who believes otherwise was the victim of an absurd delusion."

Cline based this proclamation on two beliefs:

"One was that any storm pushing a high surf or a storm tide, that this water would simply flow over Galveston into the bay behind and into the Texas Prairie, leaving Galveston just harmlessly passed over."

The other reason was based on the shallow slope of the Gulf coastline:

"And his belief was that because of this long slope that incoming surf would be broken up and made less dangerous."

But tragically, on September 8, 1900 a hurricane did hit Galveston, killing 12,000 people including Cline's family. More on one of the worst of American weather disasters tomorrow on The Weather Notebook which is underwritten by Subaru, the beauty of all wheel drive.

 
Related Links

A Brief Bio of Isaac Monroe Cline

Isaac Cline's official report to the Weather Bureau Office, September 23, 1900.

 

Isaac's Storm A Man, a Time, and the Deadliest Hurricane in History   "An absurd delusion," is how Isaac Cline, a dedicated and highly trained first-generation employee of the new U.S. Weather Bureau, characterized the fear that any hurricane posed a serious danger to the burgeoning city of Galveston, Texas. Based partly on Cline's expert opinion, Galveston dismissed a proposal to erect a seawall, claiming it a needless, wasteful expense. In 1900, Cline's words reflected not only his own opinion but also the spirit -- what would one day be seen as the hubris -- of his time.