Survivors retell the story of Quake Lake 60 years later

EARTHQUAKE LAKE, Mont. (AP) — Earthquake Lake, also known in Montana as Quake Lake, formed 60 years ago Saturday when a 7.3-magnitude earthquake caused massive landslide that blocked the Madison River west of Yellowstone National Park.

Survivors are remembering their experiences for the anniversary of the largest quake on record to strike the Rocky Mountains.

Anita Painter Thon tells the Bozeman Daily Chronicle that she was 12 when her family camped in the Madison Canyon the night of the quake in 1959. She says the roar just before midnight sounded like a train.

Bonnie Schreiber, who was 7 at the time, says the ground rolled like waves, and then she saw water.

The earthquake killed 28 people. The landslide stopped the river, turning a swath of canyon into a lake.

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Information from: Bozeman Daily Chronicle, http://www.bozemandailychronicle.com