Breckenridge Braces for a Second Crest
Laura McCallum
April 11, 1997

Listen

Residents of Breckenridge are preparing for round two of their battle with the Red River. The river is expected to crest again this weekend, as the community is still trying to recover from a mix of floodwater, rain and a blizzard. Minnesota Public Radio's Laura McCallum reports.

SFX: BIRDS CHIRPING

THE BIRDS ARE ABOUT THE ONLY INDICATION of spring in Breckenridge - chunks of ice line the streets and you can see your breath. The town of about 4000 seems largely deserted. City officials have asked residents to stay home so they don't interfere with flood control efforts.

SFX

In preparation for a second crest of the Red River this weekend, volunteers are sandbagging trouble spots around town. The Red crested for the first time last weekend, at about nine feet above flood stage, and that was followed by three inches of rain and a blizzard that dropped six inches of snow. A dike broke, making Breckenridge into a skating rink. It seems too much for one community to survive, yet residents like Jackie Miller talk about it matter-of-factly.

I THINK WE WOULD HAVE BEEN FINE IF IT WEREN'T FOR THAT THREE INCHES OF RAIN WE GOT BEFORE THE BLIZZARD HIT. BECAUSE THEN WE HAD OUR DIKES UP AND IT RAINED IN THE DIKES AND THAT SATURATED THE STORM SEWERS. AND THAT'S WHEN WE LOST IT.

Miller's home wasn't flooded, so she's been volunteering for a week - sandbagging, helping out at the fire hall. The sandbags are heavy, but she and other volunteers seem to be in good spirits.

THE FIRST FEW DAYS IT HURT, IT DOESN'T HURT ANYMORE! YOU CAN'T FEEL ANYTHING!

The volunteers are shoring up a dike next to George Colvert's house, On the other side of the sandbags is the Ottertail River, which feeds into the Red. Right now it's a sheet of ice. Colvert says he's just returned from a trip to California.

IT WAS ALL UNDER WHEN I CAME BACK. (IS YOUR HOME COMPLETELY FLOODED?) WELL, THE BASEMENT WAS. I GOT IT JUST ABOUT ALL CLEANED UP. I'M WAITING FOR THE ELECTRICIAN TO COME IN, THE FURNACE MAN, AND THEN I'LL BE GOING AGAIN. WELL I'M STAYING HERE NOW!

SFX

At the Breckenridge fire hall, volunteers serve up sloppy joes to hungry sandbaggers. Mayor Cal Michaels says it's that spirit of neighbor helping neighbor that's keeping residents going right now, as they prepare for a second crest that could reach seven or eight feet above flood stage.

WE'RE DRAINED, NO DOUBT ABOUT IT - PEOPLE ARE PHYSICALLY EXHAUSTED, THEY'VE WORKED EXTREMELY HARD, THEY'VE WORKED LONG HOURS. AND TO RIDE THAT EMOTIONAL ROLLER COASTER, TO THINK, WELL NOW WE'VE GOT IT LICKED, AND THEN TO HAVE THOSE KIND OF ELEMENTS HIT YOU, AND TO SEE PART OF IT LOST, THAT TAKES AN EMOTIONAL TOLL ON YOU.

Michaels seems on the verge of tears when he talks about the many acts of kindness he's seen over the past few weeks. He says he couldn't be more proud of the way his community has responded to what's been called a 500-year flood.

Return to Flood of 1997