Flood in 2009? (Fargo, Bismarck, Grand Forks: buying a house, neighborhood, buy)

[Kerby W-R]

Ouch !
That's very sad. As usual people have to get hurt before they do something. It should be the other way around. When will they learn ? Take care...North Dakotans !!!

[c0ldfuse]

Originally Posted by Kerby W-R

Ouch !
That's very sad. As usual people have to get hurt before they do something. It should be the other way around. When will they learn ? Take care...North Dakotans !!!

The Missouri River is flooding in Bismarck now, there are mandatory evacuations taking place.

[LadydeMontego]

My sister is currently stranded on her Enderlin, ND farm.

Have heard the water has gone down a bit but they are expecting more rain and snow....

2 million sandbags are currently needed in Fargo.

Have seen some pics of nasty flooding in Lisbon and Milnor areas.

[DOUBLE H]

There has been quite a bit of coverage on CNN, FOX News, etc. on this situation. Just had a little more coverage on NBC.

Saying a few prayers for the Dakota folks. Trudy (Mod), I'd like to contribute in some way; will the Red Cross, Salvation Army, or other groups be taking donations, that go to the affected people there in Fargo?

[3-Oaks]

I know the SA is helping with food here in Valley City, so I'd assume RC and/or SA are helping in Fargo, too.

I just googled Salvation Army Fargo flood. There is a link where you can donate.

There are lots of pics, too.

THANK YOU!!!!

[3-Oaks]

Forgot to say that if it doesn't get used in Fargo specifically, it would go to any of a couple dozen small towns that are having the same problems but don't get the publicity. There's been a couple little towns evacuated already.

Basically the whole southeastern 1/4 of North Dakota is in a world of hurt.

Hundreds of farms are islands or flooded, there's no travel advised anywhere after dark. Even I-94 and I-29 are closed in areas because of water rushing over the roads. On 10 PM news last night 1 county sheriff said 85% of the roads in his county were under water & many washed out.

Here in Valley City, the SA is basically buying the meat and buns/bread for the BBQ's (HOT food is fantastic after hours out in the cold) and for some cold sandwiches.

The senior citizen's center and another group are doing all the cooking and sandwich assembly in one of the churchs. Volunteers are bringing in pans & pans of bars & cookies (I have 2 or 3 pans to make tomorrow), chips, pop, energy drinks, & bottled water. Then the SA helps take the meals where they're needed.

So far, all has been going well here, but it will be a long time before we're out of trouble, so hopefully the bars, cookies, water, etc (and cash) keep coming in.

Thanks again wherever you help!

[soundforlanguage81]

This kind of thing absolutely disgusts me. You live in a low-lying flood plain you would think some sort of protection would be a precautionary measure before a flood (or in ND's case more flooding) took place. I'm from western North Carolina and numerous towns and communities were devastated in '04 when the remnants of hurricanes Ivan and Frances moved through the area. What action was taken? None. After millions spent to rebuild roads and bridges they decided a floodway through an unflooded section was the best remedy. Educated idiots seem to always know what's best for all of us. I certainly hope ND/MN ultimately win the fight with the river....

[3-Oaks]

Originally Posted by soundforlanguage81

This kind of thing absolutely disgusts me. You live in a low-lying flood plain you would think some sort of protection would be a precautionary measure before a flood (or in ND's case more flooding) took place. ....

What's causing all the problems this year as it did in 1997 is that it warmed up way faster than usual, so all the fields & stuff are melting at once causing overland flooding, so all that water is coming from the opposite direction from the river.

A few dikes along the river are no big deal, but when you suddenly have to put up protection all the way around the whole town, it really complicates things, plus with all the extra runoff, the rivers are rising faster than usual. AND, the real main problem is that the Red River flows NORTH, so the south end is thawing while the north end is still froze solid so it's not really 'flowing' all that much some years so the melt water all runs into the river, and when the banks get full, runs out again. Plus, both Fargo & Grand Forks sit where another major river flows into the Red River. 1997 was supposedly a 1 in 500 year flood, so Fargo and Grand Forks sure weren't expecting it again this soon.

Then yesterday the whole area had 1-3 inches of rain and now 2/3 of the state is shut down from a major blizzard. Thank goodness we didn't get the 40+" of snow that parts of South Dakota got!

Check out our Road Report map. It's constantly updated, but no one can ever remember 3/4 of the state being impassable for one reason or another.

Department of Transportation - Road, Map, and Travel Information

[R_Cowgirl]

Originally Posted by 3-Oaks

1997 was supposedly a 1 in 500 year flood, so Fargo and Grand Forks sure weren't expecting it again this soon.

I just learned something: "100 year floods" and "500 year floods" aren't what they sound like. The phrase is one the insurance companies use to determine the percentage of possibility in any given year... if that makes sense. It doesn't mean they only happen every 100 or 500 years... Here's the link: BASIN: What is a 100 year flood?

[thomjoe]

Sad to say, the FM area is under a winter storm warning tonight, 3/24, with a potential of several inches of snow. This is not good. I am a Fargo native living in the Cities and called the Flood hotline in Fargo to see if they still needed help, and they were more worried about me driving up in this weather. God Bless those people.I hope I can get back to my hometown to help if need be...