"The event that we bring you today is June 28, 1954. It is a date that is marked on the two communities of Piedras Negras and Eagle Pass. An event that caused much destruction, but also joined us all," said Joe Cruz, Director of the Main Street Project, "It made us stronger. I am grateful to Ramon Carrillo and all the people that are visiting us today from Piedras Negras as well as all my brothers here in Eagle Pass.  I want to take a moment to thank my great friend who always helps us with our Main Street programs, Jeff Taylor.  He's got our history on Facebook 'Like' "Eagle Pass Back In the Day" who along with Mr. Carrillo, has also made efforts to document the history of our area in an effort together they do on their own time. They love history and want our people involved in the production of our history in order to tell our story."

He thanked Dariela Carrillo, Cassandra Gutierrez, Patrick Gutierrez, Ana Lorena Salinas of Border Federal Credit Union who brought her children Henry and Suzette to help. 

"Parks and Recreation and the City of Eagle Pass, our Mayor Ramsey English-Cantu, and Lizette Sanchez who will sing the national anthem," Cruz said.

"We were working really hard to make sure this event became a reality," said The Honorable Ramsey English-Cantú, Mayor of the City of Eagle Pass,"Especially the Main Street Program always recognizing what is important in our past taking care of the present and looking towards the future and I know that when we look at the Flood of '54, we actually see a lot of what our relatives had to go through.  I of course was not around in 1954, but I can say that I've heard a lot of stories that have come through citizens and family members who have shared what  exactly they had to go through in one of the most devastating floods that our community has ever seen."

With this they presented a video that was captured from a US Army plane of flying over the area where the devastating amount of water that threatened our border was and the destruction it left behind could be almost felt. 

You could also see areas of our neighboring city of Piedras Negras such as La Villa de Fuente. You can also see the numbers of people who lost everything and were asking for food and shelter. These images transport us to a time more than half a century ago where we see our people dealing with nature.

This reporter's mother Mary G. Ibarra assisted the nurses and doctors who were busy attending to the wounded on these days.

"We look back to some of the disasters and the floods that we have lived through recently, and that ultimately has had a major effect to this community, but how we saw no people's lives lost, this flood took people's lives, they lost their belongings in Eagle Pass and Piedras Negras," concluded Cantú, "It of course united both communities into coming together and helping each other.  Of course today Eagle Pass and Piedras Negras moved into a very productive community a very productive region as it is today."