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The Great Flood of 1997



Rapid City
1972

Memories of one of the deadliest floods in US history are still strong.

Part 1
Transcript

Part 2
Transcript


Flood
Diary

We asked Reverend Craig Hansen, a pastor who lives in a flood-threatened section of Fargo, to record his thoughts during the siege of the Red River:

May 4 (5:13)
Concluding entry
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April 23 (3:38)
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April 14 (2:28)
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April 11 (2:51)
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April 8 (2:40)
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April 7 (3:45)
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M A Y 23

Return to Lincoln Park
Transcript - Listen
"I look at my neighbors' houses and I cry."

Condemned Housing
Transcript - Listen
"A lot of them are hazardous, falling hazards."


M A Y 22

Home Sweet Trailer
Transcript - Listen
"It may be kind of crowded with six, but it beats sleeping in your car or somewhere else."


M A Y 16

Prom: Take My Breath Away
Transcript - Listen
"The only thing I got to grab was my dress - then the house went under completely."


M A Y 15

UND Opens for Summer Session
Transcript - Listen
"Think of the internship opportunities we're going to have available to our students as our community goes through this process."


M A Y 14

Small Businesses Reeling
Transcript - Listen
"I feel the business people are coming out on the short end of the stick."

Help Wanted: Electricians
Transcript - Listen
"Contractors have been coming to town that have outstanding warrants against them."

Where to Take the Little Ones?
Transcript - Listen
"There's a lot to do, but we're talking about our kids."


M A Y 12

Grand Forks Herald Presses On
Transcript - Listen
"Our people found greatness they didn't know they had."

Future of Ada Health Facilities in Question
Transcript - Listen
"We need a clinic desperately, I think."


M A Y 9

On the Wrong Side of the New Dike
Transcript
"Let 'em push it in and haul it away."

A Flood of Trash
Transcript - Listen
"Dump it in the street, dump it in the alley; wherever they want it, we dump it."


M A Y 8

Second Angel Appears for Flood Victims
Transcript - Listen
"The first Angel's hope was that this would be a lead gift and additional gifts might come in."

Not a Drop to Drink
Transcript - Listen
"Just because there's water at the tap doesn't mean it's gonna be good."


M A Y 6

A Visit to the Emergency Room
Transcript - Listen
"When United Hospital shut down, that was the living end."


M A Y 5

A Congregation in Grief and Hope
Transcript - Listen
"Maybe it will teach us we can't live by computers alone."


M A Y 1

Attending a Flood Recovery Fair in Bemidji
Transcript
"When you figure out you can't save something that was really important to you, that's the moment when you realize 'my life has changed.'"

Day of Prayer in Fargo
Transcript - Listen
"God has his ways of setting off the alarm clock and waking us up."


A P R I L 3 0

Homeowners Face the Costs
Transcript
"It's hard enough for something like this to happen; and then to worry about financial situations."

Free Sand in Sioux Falls
Transcript - Listen
"As fast as the city hauls it in, people are right here to pick it up."

Striving for Normal in Breckenridge
Transcript - Listen
"It's getting bad when you say 'home' and mean your friend's basement."


A P R I L 2 9

The Long Wait to Return Home
Transcript
"I hope we would find my house and it would still be in one piece."

Estimating the Damage in Grand Forks
Transcript - Listen
"Downtown Grand Forks looks like it's been through a battle.."


A P R I L 2 8

Volunteer Airlift
Transcript - Listen
Geo-political differences often become meaningless in times of crisis.

Back to School
Transcript - Listen
"You've got just any number of school kids who are going to be affected."

Services for the Stressed
Transcript - Listen
"Psychologically, it's a huge thing to have happened to them."

Seeking New Paths to Disaster Recovery
Transcript - Listen
"We're really confronted with . . . close to a billion-dollar expense."


A P R I L 2 5

Communications for Evacuees
Part I: Video Conferencing in Bemidji

Transcript - Listen
"We can turn on interactive studios across the upper Midwest and link people instantly."

Communications for Evacuees
Part II: Reunion Room in Moorhead

Transcript - Listen
"It's been important for us just to be connected with people."


A P R I L 2 4

Some Blame the Weather Service
Transcript - Listen
"They not only missed it, they blew it big."

Beginning the Cleanup in Montevideo
Transcript - Listen
"I didn't think the cleanup would be that hard."

At Salvation Army Flood Relief Central
Transcript - Listen
"I have two pair of jeans, two shirts, two pair of underwear and that's it!"


A P R I L 2 3

The Neighbors' Tales
Transcript - Listen
"The water was coming through the bricks like a faucet."


A P R I L 2 1

East Grand Forks Underwater
MPR reporter Dan Gunderson goes on boat patrol with local police.
Transcript - Listen
"It was my husband's grandmother's house - it's all gone, every bit of it."


A P R I L 1 6

Mainstreet Radio Special Report
A two-hour broadcast with interviews, call-ins, and on-the-scene reports linking MPR's St. Paul and Moorhead studios.
Rundown with access to audio files.


A P R I L 1 5

No Rest for Weary Residents
Transcript - Listen
"I know some people who've lost their dikes today."


A P R I L 1 4

Red River Continues to Crest
Transcript | Listen
"The duration becomes an issue."

Gawkers Crowd Metro Riverbanks
Transcript - Listen
"A once-in-a-lifetime sight."


A P R I L 1 3

Breckenridge Hopes Worst Is Over
Transcript - Listen
"We tried, but it's tough to fight Mother Nature."


A P R I L 1 1

Dike Watchers
Transcript - Listen
"If there's anything good in this, it's that it's brought people together."

Breckenridge Braces for a Second Crest
Transcript - Listen
"I think we would have been fine if it weren't for that three inches of rain we got before the blizzard hit."

Preparations Along the Mighty Mississippi
Transcript
"The river is a very unsafe place right now."


A P R I L 1 0

Army Corps of Engineers: New Channels?
Transcript - Listen
"We can start out with a community and look at all sorts of alternatives."

Moorhead Under Siege
Transcript
"It's sweeping into towns that have never been flooded before."


A P R I L 9

The Town of Harwood Dikes Itself In
Transcript - Listen
"We may have to run pretty fast."

Crest Projections Raised in Fargo-Moorhead
Transcript - Listen
"My concern right now is not to panic."


A P R I L 8

Metro Area Waters Rise
Transcript - Listen
"Local organizers are pleading for more help."


A P R I L 7

Rescuing the Marooned
Transcript | Listen
"The house was surrounded, the basement was flooded, the power was flickering. It was time to leave."

Flooding in Granite Falls
Transcript
"We're hanging on by our fingernails."