Dec 14, 2005 
Everyone in southeast Missouri goes to Johnson’s Shut-Ins in the summer. The “shut-ins” are a spot where the clear waters of the Black River have cut through ancient volcanic rock, forming a labyrinth of chutes, slides, gorges, potholes, waterfalls, and pools. The photo shows just a small portion of the shut-ins.
The Ameren power company says that the rupture that emptied its 50-acre reservoir on Proffit Mountain today released a billion gallons of water that flooded the shut-ins. The rocks themselves are, I assume, safe, but are the trees gone? I’d really like to know. And what about Elephant Rock?
Christopher Leonard of the Associated Press reported that “in a matter of minutes the 50-acre reservoir had emptied itself out with terrifying effect, turning the surrounding area into a landscape of flattened trees and clay-covered grass. ‘We’ll never see anything like it in our lifetime again,’ paramedic Chris Hoover said.”
As tragedies go this one isn’t that big a deal, I suppose, considering that part of the Ozarks is sparsely populated (as you can see in this photo of the reservoir, pre-rupture). But this is one of the prettiest parts of the state of Missouri — or it was, before today. I’d like to know what happened. If anyone can provide details of what happened to local landmarks and towns, please add to the comments.
Update: The St. Louis Post-Dispatch has a photo gallery of the damage; see “related links” column to the right of this story.
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