• The American flag has seen many of the country’s most significant historical events since its official adoption.
• This Flag Day marks the 245th anniversary of the Second Continental Congress’ adoption of the American flag.
• American flag has weathered  extreme weather disasters since it was first picked to represent the United States.
  
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The American flag has seen many of the country’s most significant historical events since its official adoption on July 14, 1777. Many of the most powerful meteorological phenomena known to humans have occurred during Old Glory’s illustrious existence, and she has managed to avoid many of them.

In honor of Flag Day on Tuesday, which marks the 245th anniversary of the Second Continental Congress’ adoption of the American flag, here’s a rundown of four of the many extreme weather disasters that the American flag has weathered since it was first picked to represent the United States.

Hurricane Dorian

It hammered the Bahamas and areas of the US Southeast coast in 2019 with gusts of up to 185 mph, making it one of the most powerful storms in the Atlantic basin’s history.

Strong gusts blew down an American flag on Frying Pan Tower, a structure 34 miles offshore of Cape Fear, as the hurricane moved off the North Carolina coast as a Category 2 storm. Even though the storm brought winds of up to 110 mph, the flag remained intact. North Carolina had proclaimed a state of emergency in advance of the hurricane. At least 84 people died and another 245 people went missing throughout the storm’s lifetime, largely in the Bahamas, where Dorian wreaked havoc as a Category 5 hurricane.

Lake Fire

One American flag was saved by firefighters in Los Angeles County during the Lake Fire in 2020, which burnt structures north of Los Angeles in the middle of August of that year.

Engine 164 firemen took a break from their fight to save the American flag from near a burned-out structure north of Los Angeles before embers from the fire set it ablaze.

With flames lapping in the background and what appeared to be burning structures, the firefighters tenderly lowered the flag from its pole and carried it back with them, conserving it for another day.

“Even as we battle fast-spreading flames and dangerous conditions, our members continue to serve with respect and honor,” the fire department wrote.

Read more: Flag Day: Americans are enthusiastically raising red, blue, and white flags, high up in the sky

Blizzard

On March 17, 2021, a late-season blizzard in Amarillo, Texas, brought strong gusts of up to 64 mph and many hours of heavy snowfall. It also strained the limits of a flag in the area, with the red, white, and blue flags flapping wildly in the wind.

The wind and blizzard conspired to create near-whiteout conditions, obstructing even close range views of the flag. The storm created hazardous driving conditions in the Texas Panhandle, with police reporting multiple accidents.

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Glass Fire

The Fremont Fire Department managed to salvage an American flag from the Fairwinds Estate Winery in Calistoga while the Glass Fire raged through California’s Wine Country.

The rescue took happened in the early morning hours of September 28, 2020, with flames barely feet behind the firefighters. The flag was saved by the brave firefighters, but the winery was destroyed.

In a statement uploaded to Twitter, the firefighters said, “We did everything we could with what we had to minimize the losses.” “We never gave up, even if we couldn’t rescue the building.” We were successful in saving the flag and remaining in the fight. That night, several properties were salvaged.

Read more: DeSantis ordered flags to be flown at half-staff to mourn the victims