A crowd of more than 800 people Thursday night gathered at a remembrance event held at Nelson County High School in Lovingston to commemorate the 40th anniversary of Hurricane Camille.

Driving up Virginia 151 in Nelson County less than two days after the gentle countryside had been subjected to the fury of the remnants of Hurricane Camille, the scene was surreal.

This week, the Lynchburg Government Channel will air “Portrait of a Disaster,“ a documentary of Hurricane Camille produced by the Virginia State Police and the Virginia Department of Transportation.

Forty years ago this week, the remnants of Hurricane Camille ripped through Nelson County and surrounding areas, devastating homes, tearing apart roadways, washing away bridges and killing more than 120 county residents.

Four decades have done little to clear up the identities of eight bodies found in and near Nelson County in the aftermath of the destruction caused by the remnants of Hurricane Camille.

Looking at Davis Creek today, it is hard to reconcile the little waterway with the monstrosity that raged over one night in August 1969.

Forty years ago just a little after 9 p.m. on Aug. 19, Hurricane Camille ripped through Nelson County and surrounding areas, devastating homes, tearing apart roadways, washing away bridges and killing more than 150 people.

ARRINGTON — Finally, Nelson County’s past has moved from the future into the present.

TYE RIVER - The late Elizabeth “Bess” Quinn of Charlottesville used to joke about having to pay her “dam taxes” to Nelson County.