People who live in the area are accustomed to the sound of the rushing waters – and they have been since there were people living in the area. So, you can imagine how if that sound were to suddenly come to a halt, residents may be a little shocked. That’s exactly what happened when, for the first time in 1848, the Niagara Falls stopped, well, falling.
For 30 hours, on March 29th, millions of tons of ice blocked the flow from Lake Erie. And, just as Mother Nature had caused the dam, she took it away with some strong gusts of winds just over a full day later.
In 1950, the Niagara River Water Diversion Treaty was signed into effect to help “enhance the scenic beauty” of the falls, while providing everyone the benefits of using the water. Part of this treaty includes restrictions on the amount of outflow at certain times of the day (and night).
Aside from time of day, time of year also plays a role in how much water escapes the falls each second. That’s because things tend to run differently between November and March, when the outflow is cut in half.
Until the mid 1960’s, ice could block the flow of the water petty far up the river. Usually, however, everything continues as usual. Or at least, the falls continue to produce at least 50,000 gallons per second. But on some occasions, like the 2014-2015 polar vortex, the falls freeze up completely. Take a look at the picture below, that has begun circulating the internet and is referred to as the “frozen falls".
Visiting Niagara around this time of year has proven to be dangerous. Certain safety precautions have been instilled since three visitors lost their lives to falling ice in the area.
After the 30-hour debacle in March of 1848, engineers knew they had to spring into action to prevent anything like that from happening again. Now, to stop ice from blocking the flow, yearly precautions are taken. A three-kilometer ice boom is installed where the mouth of The Niagara River meets Lake Erie.
22 steel pontoons work together to control the amount of ice that makes it into the river. But 1848 wouldn’t be the last time the water would stop falling. Only the next time, it was man who made it happen.
Debris at the base of The American Falls was starting to concern everyone. So, in 1969, the U.S Army decided to intervene. The Army Corp of Engineers started studying what measures they could take, if any, to remove the blockage.
But before anything could be done, the International Joint Commission had to be consulted. After all, this wasn’t just the U.S involved, since the falls are in Canada, as well.