Roanoke Rapids Daily Herald

Rabbits were forced this morning to escape which L. M. Shearin reported at 11 a.m. feet, enough to inundate the Mush Island section near the old fish back of the Community House UN M

At Roanoke Mills Company, No. 1 mill in Roanoke Rapids, Jimmy Sears, assistant superintendent, reported that the Roanoke had reached a point of 63 feet on the company's special meter. Sears said this was equivalent to 39 feet 10 inches in Weldon.

Shearin said the river was seven and one-half feet above flood stage of 31 feet at Weldon and that the crest of the river was not expected before Thursday night. He predicted a crest of 42 feet at Weldon.

The river was reported to be out of its banks and inundating farm lands beyond Roanoke Rapids and throughout several other portions of the county. In some fields along the river there were reported to be many stacks of unharvested peanuts and the damage to that crop.

Various estimates of the amount of land which would be inundated if the river crests at 42 feet at Weldon were heard. One of them was that 22,000 acres of land in Halifax County would be covered by the flood waters.

Sears said that the river would have to reach 67 feet on the mill's meter before it reached the basement of the company's die house at Roanoke Number One.

He added that the company had so arranged the die house that the motors therein could be removed in the event of a flood.

Sears said that engineers who had prepared the measuring instrument for the mill's estimated that it would take 33 hours for the crest of a flood in Clarksville to reach Roanoke Number one.

Waters of the Roanoke were reported covering the Old Jackson road near Weldon and were reported over the Gut Bridge.

The impending flood recalled to mind of many residents of the area the 1940 flood of the Roanoke River which caused a million dollars damage to the area.

The 1940 inundation caused the shutdown of Roanoke Number One and extensive damage to the Virginia Electric Power Company sub-station as well as much damage to farm lands of the surrounding area.

through parts of Weldon this ing waters of the Roanoke River, :ial weather forecaster for Weldon, reached a level of 38 and one-half virtually all of the farm land in nd to cause water to begin rising y and covering some of the land uilding. 3 At Roanoke Mills Company, A uver 140,-