Deja Vu

I was only twelve the last time their was a major flood to hit the valley. It was the flood of ninety- seven and at that time I was living in my home town of East Grand Forks, MN. The only difference is the flooding that year in Grand Forks/East Grand Forks was much worse. I don't mean to sound unsympathetic, because I understand the magnitude of the devastation that has occurred here in the F-M area. It's just that in my opinion this event wasn't as grave as everyone made it out to be. I mean the support given to the two communities was amazing, and the quick action taken by both cities along with the state and federal levels of government without a doubt saved the cities from mass devastation. In ninety-seven we didn't exactly get the level of support we saw here in Fargo/Moorhead. For example, that year we were told for weeks that the river would crest at forty-nine feet. A crest level the National Weather Service stood firmly behind until whoops, it rose another five feet to make the final crest level fifty-four feet. A level that flooded ALL but SEVEN homes within city limits of East Grand Forks. The unforeseen crest level mixed with numerous dyke failures combined for the worst flood in centuries. The evacuation was city wide in both GF/EGF, and it was good luck if you found a house that didn't experience sewage backup. My main point for this blog is that, I never once was terribly concerned that Fargo/Moorhead was in any eminent danger. Because, the preparation I saw here was non-existent in GF/EGF, and I knew these cities would be victorious over the Red. So what did I do during this recent flood? Helped sandbag and enjoyed the extended break from school.