The Lake That Vanished in an Afternoon: Lake Peigneur, Louisiana 1980 | History Documentary

On November 20, 1980, a fisherman and his nephew watched a quiet ten-foot-deep lake in southern Louisiana begin to disappear. By that afternoon it was gone. An oil rig sank, eleven barges were pulled into a whirlpool, a canal began running backward, and a working salt mine 1,300 feet below filled with water. Everyone survived. But the most important question was never officially answered: how did it happen? 00:00 The lake that vanished 00:44 Ch. 1 - What lay beneath 02:09 Ch. 2 - The drill 03:28 Ch. 3 - Something in the tunnels 05:27 Ch. 4 - The whirlpool 07:23 Ch. 5 - The river runs backward 08:35 Ch. 6 - The question no one could answer 10:21 Next: The molasses wave SOURCES Lake Peigneur - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lake_Pe... 64 Parishes, "Lake Peigneur Drilling Accident" - https://64parishes.org/entry/lake-pei... Amusing Planet, "The Lake Peigneur Drilling Disaster" - https://www.amusingplanet.com/2022/04... Damn Interesting, "Lake Peigneur: The Swirling Vortex of Doom" - https://www.damninteresting.com/lake-... FOX 8 Live, "Heart of Louisiana: Lake Peigneur" (Leonce Viator Jr. and Mike Richard) - https://www.fox8live.com/story/172206... KATC, "Memories from the mine: reflections on the Jefferson Island disaster" (Myrna Romero) - https://www.katc.com/iberia-parish/me... KPEL 96.5, "Meet Mr. Menard, He Survived the Lake Peigneur Disaster" - https://kpel965.com/meet-mr-menard-he... Some details differ between sources, including the exact depth of the drill and the number of barges. The 3D models and maps in this video are simplified illustrations, not engineering drawings, and the canal route is approximate. CREDITS Music: "Twin Lynches" - Density & Time; "House on the Hill" - Everet Almond (YouTube Audio Library) Map data: Natural Earth (public domain) #history #louisiana #mystery