Editing Mitchell, Oregon (section)

===Three catastrophic flash floods===
Since its founding, Mitchell has experienced three catastrophic [[flash floods]] along Bridge Creek, which runs through the center of the city. Flooding caused great damage to the city in 1884 and 1904.<ref name ="salemlibrary">{{cite AV media |title = Oregon Historic Photographs Collection |publisher = Salem Public Library |url = http://photos.salemhistory.net/cdm4/item_viewer.php?CISOROOT=/max&CISOPTR=2325&REC=20 |access-date = September 24, 2008}}</ref>

The third flood occurred on July 13, 1956, shortly after an intense thunderstorm in the hills to the south. Bridge Creek is usually less than {{convert|12|in|cm}} deep during July,<ref name="noaa"/> but minutes after the thunderstorm a {{convert|50|ft|m|adj=on}} wall of water surged through Mitchell, destroying or heavily damaging 20&nbsp;buildings in the city and several bridges over the creek. Eight people were killed including a family of four who were swept away and never recovered.

An observer from the [[United States Geological Survey]] estimated that about {{convert|4|in|cm}} of rain had fallen in about 50&nbsp;minutes at the storm's center.<ref name ="noaa">{{cite report |title = Some of the area's rainstorms |publisher = National Weather Service Forecast Office |place=Portland, Oregon |url = http://www.wrh.noaa.gov/pqr/paststorms/rain.php |access-date = September 22, 2008}}</ref> Total damage from the flood, which also caused extensive damage to crops and roads in a nearby valley, was {{US$|709,000|1956|round=-3|about=yes}}.<ref name="armycorps">{{cite web |title=Flood of 1955-1956: Columbia River and tributaries |publisher=U.S. Army Corps of Engineers |url=http://www.nww.usace.army.mil/dpn/fldinfo%5Cff19556.htm |access-date=September 22, 2008 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090110002337/http://www.nww.usace.army.mil/dpn/fldinfo/ff19556.htm |archive-date=January 10, 2009 }}</ref>