I decided to do a site on this town unfotunately during a flood (March 2007)...
Browns Valley residents begin flood cleanup
Morris Sun Tribune
Published Saturday, March 17, 2007
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Dave DeSautel surveys his basement and said "My furnace is toast." DeSautel, of Browns Valley, is no stranger to floods -- he lost everything in Grand Forks, N.D., in 1997 when the building he was living in was destroyed as a result of that record-setting flood. "At least this time, the water doesn't stink like it did up in Grand Forks," adds the over-the-road trucker. Photo by Bruce Crummy, Forum Communications.
Alternate transportation
ST. PAUL � The state representative for flood-damaged Browns Valley says Minnesota will need to help the 650-population community recover.
While officials are examining the damage, some Democrats complained that Gov. Tim Pawlenty was campaigning for presidential candidate John McCain in Iowa instead of working on the Browns Valley problem.
The governor and 7th District Congressman Collin Peterson visited the community on Friday.
Browns Valley lawmakers were looking into what could be done for the town.
�If there is a community that needs help from the state, it�s Browns Valley,� said Rep. Paul Marquart, DFL-Dilworth.
The community has a high percentage of elderly residents and it has little property tax base on which to base a recovery, the lawmaker added.
On top of that, Marquart said that it appears the town is so small that it would not have enough damage to reach the minimum dollar damage for federal aid.
�There probably will be little, if any, federal help,� he said.
Marquart told fellow representatives Thursday that 150 people were evacuated during Wednesday flooding that filled about 50 homes with up to eight feet of water.
�Keep the residents of Browns Valley in your thoughts and your prayers,� he urged.
Even before the town dries out, officials today are to assess damage and plan for the future.
Pawlenty talked to city and Traverse County officials Friday afternoon, then toured damage before meeting with the public in the town�s elementary school.
Pawlenty spokesman Brian McClung said the governor is �open to providing any required assistance,� including asking the Legislature to appropriate disaster-recovery money to the city if needed.
�We understand it is a small community, but Minnesota always comes out to help cities recovering from a natural disaster,� McClung said.
Pawlenty, co-chairman of the McCain presidential committee campaigned in Des Moines, Ames and elsewhere Thursday.
�The governor is once again putting his national ambitions ahead of Minnesotans� interests,� said Brian Melendez, Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party chairman. �Western Minnesota is flooding and local officials are seeking disaster relief, but Gov. Pawlenty is spending his time campaigning for a struggling presidential candidate in Iowa.�
Sen. Keith Langseth, DFL-Glyndon, also was unhappy.
�I guess he puts first things first,� Langseth said sarcastically.
However, McClung said that Pawlenty�s office has been in contact with local officials and the governor was ready to cancel the Iowa trip if he was needed in Browns Valley.
�We have administration officials who are on the ground in Browns Valley,� McClung said, adding that local officials were comfortable with the timing because it gave them time to assess damage.
Marquart said he won�t criticize Pawlenty.
�He is very sympathetic to the needs there,� Marquart said Thursday. �He�s going to be in Browns Valley tomorrow; I�m happy.�
Marquart had Capitol meetings Friday, but is expected to be in Browns Valley today.
Langseth said it is too early to know how much the state will need to help.
�They will need help from someplace,� the senator said.
Corey Larson and Tashina Abraham (hidden) help her mother Debra Abraham on Wednesday retrieve personal belongings from her house as they hitch a ride on a loader -- the only way in and out of the neighborhood in Browns Valley, where a quick spring melt caused a flood that began late Tuesday and necessitated the evacuation of about 150 in the middle of the night. Photo by Bruce Crummy, Forum Communications.
Corey Larson and Tashina Abraham (hidden) help her mother Debra Abraham on Wednesday retrieve personal belongings from her house as they hitch a ride on a loader -- the only way in and out of the neighborhood in Browns Valley, where a quick spring melt caused a flood that began late Tuesday and necessitated the evacuation of about 150 in the middle of the night. Photo by Bruce Crummy, Forum Communications.
Browns Valley Flooding, from KSFY
"At least 100 people have been evacuated. Boats were used to
evacuate people from their homes. Some were taken to a Red Cross
emergency shelter at Browns Valley School.
Water can be seen flowing into the windows on the main floor of
some homes. The north side of Browns Velley is the hardest hit,
while the downtown area is okay.
The National Weather Service doesn't have a gauge on the Little
Minnesota at Browns Valley, so it's unclear how high the river is.
But some residents of the town of about 700 say they haven't
seen flooding like this since the mid-1960s.
Witnesses say the water was neck-high in some areas. Several
highways and bridges leading into town were closed due to high
water.
School Superintendent Brenda Reed says the flooding caught
everyone by surprise. She also had to be evacuated after her home
was flooded.
Pete Greseth lives in the flood area. He says the waters started rising rapidly late yesterday afternoon. Greseth, his adult daughter, four grandchildren and two dogs had to be hauled out by a payloader early today.
Browns Valley City Clerk Linda Schwagel says all the residents in the flood zone have been accounted for.
Schwagel says the City Council will meet soon to declare an
emergency and request cleanup help from the National Guard.
The Douglas County Red Cross is accepting donations for the flooding victims:"
Cleanup begins in flooded town
by Dan Gunderson, Minnesota Public Radio
March 14, 2007
" "We're referring to this flood as our little Katrina," he said."For us this is huge. We've done wonderful but with cleanup that's where we're going to need help."
The mayor says the community pulled together to fight the floodwater, but the small town will need help cleaning up the mess left behind when the water recedes."
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Time Lapse Driving Browns Valley MN to Watertown SD
"This video was captured by my webcam. One image per second, played back at 15 frames per second"