The Red River of the North floods pretty regularly. There was a decent-sized flood three years ago that resulted in the closure of many roads that were submerged.
But cities and towns are still in danger because funds weren't there for flood control projects after the great flood of 1997 like there were for Grand Forks. And this year's flood is expected to rival if not surpass that of 1997.
FEMA, the National Guard and the Red Cross are already working in the area, even though the river hasn't crested and the waters not receded.
But have you heard about it?
10,000 volunteers have turned out so far to help sandbagging efforts in Fargo, the largest city to be threatened by the waters. More are needed, as they need to make and lay 2,000,000 more sandbags by week's end. Our very own noddem is there today.
As you can see from the most recent Flood Warning, Fargo is by no means safe.
FORECAST...THE RIVER WILL CONTINUE RISING TO BETWEEN 39.0 AND
41.0 FEET BY SATURDAY MORNING. THIS RANGE OF LEVELS IS THE
EXPECTED CREST.
IMPACT STATEMENTS - AT 40.0 FEET...FARGO...TOP OF THE ISLAND PARK
DIKE. MOORHEAD...RED RIVER IS LAPPING AT THE BASE OF THE HERITAGE
HJEMKOMST INTERPRETIVE CENTER.
That doesn't account for any ice jams that may form on the river because of sub-freezing temperatures the rest of the week, and may not fully account for the heavy rain received over this weekend.
In Grand Forks, 90 miles to the north, they've already begun closing bridges connecting East Grand Forks because they're expecting the river to rise so quickly.
Grand Forks and East Grand Forks are better off than most cities along the Red River. The 1997 flood damaged over 90% of the homes and buildings, and a fire caused two downtown city blocks to burn to the ground, including that of the Grand Forks Herald, which won a Pulitzer for its coverage of the flood. As a result, they were given funds to help with the construction of a massive dike and wall system to keep the waters out.
Here's a link to a webcam monitoring the flood in Grand Forks. On the bottom right, you can see the still-open flood gate with traffic passing through. In the center-right, just left of the telephone pole is the flood marker. The top of it marks the height of the 1997 flood.
This is a primer. About what you'd get in a passing blurb if the media covered the story. The links above will provide better detail about what is going on and where.
Last night, the Grand Forks Herald had a pretty pathetic breaking news banner: "Obama aware of flooding." Ideally he would have already made a statement about federal efforts to help the victims, even if it's just to say they're working the logistics so when the roads open relief can get in.
But with no national news coverage (small single-engine plane crash = news of national import) I can see why he might be unaware. I mean, who cares if grain shipments are stopped because the railroads are flooded out? No one needs bread.
Not a link mentioning the flood on CNN, MSNBC or Fox News. No mention of the flood last night on MSNBC (Obama's laugh was more important).
So, I'm considering this diary my part to make the public at large aware of the problems in the Red River Valley. If you are able to make a donation to the Red Cross, please do so. If you call or mail-in your donation, you can specify the disaster to receive aid. Any help you can provide would be greatly appreciated by those in the valley.
Update [2009-3-24 11:25:18 by guyermo]:
MSNBC finally has a link on their website about the flooding, and I'm also told in the comments by luckylizard that 1600 did have a story and an interview yesterday.
CNN still has nothing on their website, but there is an update on Natalee Holloway.
Hopefully word continues to spread and it receives more coverage so these people can benefit, including many of my friends.