When Teton Dam suddenly was washed away on June 5, 1976, a large reservoir 280 feet deep was dumped on farms and towns below. Houses floated away and crop land was ruined as water surged into Snake River and American Falls Reservoir, which finally controlled the flood. Church government and disaster relief agencies responded effectively, but 14 lives were lost and hundreds of millions of dollars in damage resulted from the calamity. All that remains of Teton Dam still can be seen from a viewpoint 1.5 miles north of here.