In isolated and disastrous situations, mankind creates or amplifies extreme events. The
1972 flood in Buffalo Creek, West Virginia, is a particularly tragic example. On February 26th,
1972, a dam failure released a torrent of water and mine waste on downstream communities. In
1960, the dam was initially constructed to a height of less than 20-feet high. To expand storage
capacity, mine tailings were periodically layered and compacted atop the original structure. By1972, the haphazard dam had reached a maximum height of 60-feet (Erikson, 1976).