A Community Recovery
After the flood, the Wayne County community was faced with a large recovery effort. Water service slowly returned on Tuesday, July 81. However, this was a cause for limited celebration. As Mayor Tilford testified before the Subcommittee, the flood damage had forced Wooster’s water system to bypass treatment and eject wastewater directly into Killbuck Creek. This created many health concerns2.
In their own communities, the residents of Wooster were more directly involved in their recovery. Operation Clean Sweep, in the later weeks of July, enlisted volunteers of all ages to help in the cleanup effort3. 4H clubs from Wayne County, including one from Rittman4, were on hand to help clean up the Wayne County Fairgrounds, which eagerly planned to continue its 1969 fair in early September 5.
1- Richard Horn, “Wooster Water Works Employes Fought Hard To Restore Service,” Daily Record (Wooster, OH), July 9, 1969, p. 29. 2- U.S. House of Representatives, Ohio Storm Damage Inspection: Hearings Before The Subcommittee on Flood Control Of The Committee on Public Works (Wahsington: U.S. Government Printing Office, 1970), p. 260. 3- "Adults, Teen-Agers Join In Operation Clean Sweep," Daily Record (Wooster, OH), July 22, 1969, p. 47. 4- "Help Clean Up," Rittman Press (Rittman, OH), July 16, 1969, p. 4. 5- "Wayne Co. Fair Entries Will Close On Saturday," Daily Record (Wooster, OH), Aug. 26, 1969, p. 13.