Title: The Day Beth Came Down Town August sixteenth, nineteen seventy-one. A hurricane named Beth came to Nova Scotia. She didn't bring the worst wind Halifax had ever seen. She brought something different — nearly twelve inches of rain. Song: She came rolling up from the southern sea, With a pretty little name, Beth, But nobody knew what she had in store When she came drifting north from the States. The clouds rolled in on Halifax, Dartmouth watched the sky, Then the rain came down like a curtain And wouldn't let the rivers dry. The streets began to disappear, The water started rising, Roads became rivers, fields became lakes, And the storm kept surprising. Oh, it was the day Beth came down town, Rain pouring hard on Halifax ground, Dartmouth was fighting as the water rose, While Beth just kept on putting on the show. It wasn't the wind that brought the town down, It was the rain when Beth came down town. Nearly twelve inches fell from the sky, Two hundred ninety-six millimetres of rain, Homes took water, highways washed out, And the bridges took the strain. Railway lines were damaged, The roads were torn apart, And Halifax bus service was disrupted As Beth made her mark. Hundreds of homes in Dartmouth Were caught beneath the flood, And Nova Scotia watched the water Turn the streets into rivers of mud. Oh, it was the day Beth came down town, Rain pouring hard on Halifax ground, Bridges and highways couldn't take the strain, As Nova Scotia disappeared beneath the rain. It wasn't the wind that brought the town down, It was the rain when Beth came down town. She crossed the province heading east, Then moved toward Newfoundland, Leaving flooded roads and damaged bridges Scattered across the land. Three and a half million dollars Was the damage left behind, But there's one thing worth remembering When we look back through time: Though Beth brought destruction, Though the water rose so high, No one in Nova Scotia lost their life When that hurricane passed by. So raise a glass to those who stayed, And those who helped around, And remember August sixteenth, When Hurricane Beth came down town. Oh, it was the day Beth came down town, Rain pouring hard on Halifax ground, Nineteen seventy-one, the story still remains, When Beth brought Halifax nearly twelve inches of rain. It wasn't the wind that brought the town down, It was the rain when Beth came down town. Spoken Outro (spoken): Hurricane Beth made landfall in eastern Nova Scotia on August sixteenth, nineteen seventy-one. Halifax received approximately two hundred ninety-six millimetres of rain. Roads, bridges, railway lines and homes were damaged, and bus service was disrupted. Despite the destruction, no deaths were reported in Nova Scotia.
