Complex sentence: However, the 1849 flood was one of the first major floods reported by early European settlers, with a newspaper account of an old man who was an eyewitness in his youth to the 1849 flood.
Split into simpler sentences: However, the 1849 flood was one of the first major floods reported by early European settlers. A newspaper account tells of an old man who as a youth was an eyewitness to the 1849 flood.