Massive overflow
By Ashleigh Plemper
Farmer Staff Writer
For the first time in 75 years, what started as ice jams along the Yellowstone River to the confluence of the Yellowstone and Missouri rivers more than 50 families were forced to evacuate from their homes in western McKenzie County.
“We’ve never flooded before,” Jack Damm said. “It came up so quick. We had about three hours to get out what we could.”
According to Karolin Jappe, McKenzie County Emergency manager, the North Dakota Department of Transportation and the North Dakota State Highway Patrol closed Highway 200 between Cartwright and Fairview on Sunday, March 24, due to water levels that exceeded amounts that anyone has ever seen.
“It’s hard for these people. They haven’t seen anything like it in three generations,” Jappe says. “So it’s hard to watch them go through this. It’s not like when a tornado hits and it’s gone. This is months, probably years of work to do.”
On Wednesday, March 27, Gov. Doug Burgum declared a statewide flood emergency in preparation for the threat of significant spring flooding across North Dakota, as state agencies gathered to begin coordinating their response and resources.
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