Jacob H. Douma
Were you involved in the San Antonio project?
Not in its design. It was already constructed when I was there.
Well, none of those were particularly different, were they? I mean, these are all flood
control and debris basins basically.
That's right. All the dams in the Los Angeles area were for flood control and debris
storage. It was not economically feasible to develop water supply or hydropower in the
Los Angeles area because rainfall occurred about three months of the year, so the
reservoirs were usually dry.
So mainly there's just flood control there?
Yes.
So you spent the time from 1939 to 1946 primarily working on these flood control
structures?
A:
Yes.
Angeles
During World War II
You weren't switched to any of the military construction when the war started?
A:
No, no military construction, except that when the war started, a more concerted effort
was made to protect airfields from flooding. Moffett Field was one. When it was
constructed before the war, nothing was done to protect it from flood drainage. But after
the war started, the military decided that flood protection was needed so that the field
would be operational at all times. I assisted in the design of drainage ditches to prevent
water flows during large rainstorms from flooding the runway.
Do you remember anything else about working in Los Angeles District there during those
years? People you worked with?
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