Newsboys Concert

Tonight, I dragged Jen to the Newsboys concert. They are soooo good, and what a show! I had such a good time!!!...I told Jen it was probably because I knew the words to all but two songs. It was so much fun! (I think that Jen had a good time too.)

40th Anniversary

Dave and I celebrated the 40th anniversary of the day that we started going together. People always ask how we remember that. I tell them that we went together 4 years before we got married so we have had 4 more years celebrating this date compared to our wedding anniversary. And after all if we had never gone together, we wouldn't have gotten married. So which date is more important?

BTW, We went to a new restaurant in town called Kobe's. What a neat place! The picture doesn't do it justise. The atmosphere is great and the food is wonderful.

More Flooding!

First it was the Red River threatening Oxbow and Fargo. Then the Sheyenne River threatened Valley City, Lisbon, Kindred and Davenport. Now I just heard on the news that they are considering evacuating Jamestown because it is being threaten by the James River!

Water!

Pictures of the Flood in the Davenport area:

Update

They have decided that if the culverts on the east side of Davenport wash out, in spite of the precautions that they took yesterday, it's too big a risk to the community so.... now they are using the big equipment to close down the drain completely. The water will reroute over land to the west side of the town.

The Red River (?) railroad company has raised their tracks and removed not only the RR ties but the gravel under it so that it won't hinder the water from crossing the tracks. That was really nice of them, to help save the town of Davenport. I understand that the CP Railroad has temporarily discontinued their routes from St. Paul to Harvy, ND, because of the flooding in ND.

A Non-Flood Announcement - Yes!

We've been waiting for our first 70 degree day and we skipped it and went right to 80 degrees....83 to be exact! It's officially spring. This is how I can tell: The birds are back, there's dead bugs on my windshield, and Dave mowed the lawn!

Davenport Update

Here I am with another "Update". Surprised?

The drain on the east side of Davenport is full and the water is moving fast. I drive over it everyday on my way to Davenport School. If the flood over takes this drain, the town of Davenport would be in trouble, and many farms in the area.

The east side of Davenport has a small sandbag dike unlike the 5 foot clay dike on the south side. This east entrance to town may soon be the only entrance and if that gets washed out....... Unfortunately the culvert controlling the drain water is old and made out of cement. The fear is that with all this new pressure, the culvert will crumble and then watch the water gush!!

Officials had planned to take some precautionary measures today...but decided that they couldn't wait. Last night, with bright lights, they hauled in heavy machinery and a big crane. They are putting in large pilings in which they are adding large plates. I've been told that this will slow down the water and maybe divert some of it around to the south side of town where there is more protection.

Davenport residents received evacuation papers which told them what to do if they hear the fire alarm. I am sure it said to be ready with a bag of essentials and mark an X on your door when you leave. The X is a symbol to show that no one is in the house.

As I was traveling east on hwy 46 today. I was amazed that the water to the SE goes for as far as my eyes can see.... miles and miles. I really hope to see an aerial picture of this new lake we have. If I get a hold of one (and I've put a few hints out there) I'll post it so that you can see too.

More Flood Updates

Yesterday morning the school superintendent came out to the bus barn to find out how many buses are available if the Davenport School has to be evacuated. It is crazy around here. Now you can boat between Davenport and Kindred. (5 miles apart)

Yesterday there were 5 airboats and one Red Cross Van parked in the school parking lot. I know of about 4 houses that have lost their battle with flood waters in the past few days.

The river broke out where it was expected to. It traveled to hwy 46 but the force didn't wash out the road out right away. Hwy 46 held it back for a while which made the river break out at unexpected other areas. Now the lake, I mean the flood, extends east to the Horace hwy. (water on both sides of the road). It extends north to one mile short of hwy 16 on the east side of the river. On the west side of the river it extends much farther north.

When the water washed out hwy 46 (where expected) and it headed to Davenport. They have a 5 ft dike around part of the town. The lake, er I mean the flood, extends past Davenport going north. Yesterday they cut the road south of Davenport to direct the water away from the town. Today they might cut hwy 16 on the west side of Davenport to direct the water to the west of the town.

Today the Davenport kindergartners and first graders were told that they may have to be evacuated tomorrow or Friday. They explained all the details so that the kids will know what's going on and it hopefully will be a smooth transition moving them from Davenport School to Kindred School.

Autistic children do not do well with change. I have 4 of them on my shuttle bus. One of the little girls was so upset and scared. She wanted her mom. She cried the whole trip from Davenport to Kindred. ( Kindred School has grades 2 - 12. I shuttle many of the K-1 students between schools everyday.)

This afternoon, when going to Davenport School, I could see the water on the north side of town. It's slowly closing in on the whole town. It won't be long before the town is land-locked....possibly.

Co. Rd 1 went under today. Co. Rd 2 went under yesterday. Yes, the flood is that far east. I don't know how far south it extends.

I have let the kids take zillions of pictures out the school bus window. I've posted them on phanfare if you want to check them out. http://albums.phanfare.com/3377861/3690193_4047128#imageID=65539062

The kids' attitudes have changed over the past weeks. At first they were saying "Wow. Look at the water. Cool!" ...and they'd take pictures of the water. Now, they've all seen the water. It's not new, at all. Now they are excited about whirlpools. They mostly take pictures of just the whirl pools. ha ha (they are kind of neat.)

Articles in today's inForum

Kindred waits for Sheyenne
by Mike Nowatzki - 04/18/2009

Davenport puts up emergency clay dike

KINDRED, N.D. – Despite the Sheyenne River standing a foot deep in her garage and her husband vacuuming water out of the basement, Nancy Anderson wasn’t frazzled Friday. “We’ve been down this road before,” she said, standing on the sandbagged deck of her home 1½ miles south of Kindred.

Up and down 55 miles of the bloated Sheyenne River between Kindred and Lisbon, emergency crews used boats, four-wheelers and patrol vehicles to check on the welfare of residents who live along its banks.

Cass County Sheriff Paul Laney said most residents appeared to be better prepared than during the first crest in late March. By noon, no one had to be rescued by boat or truck. [note by Barb: tonight's news said that this afternoon two people were evacuated by air boat.]

Still, the flood threat remains high with water from embattled Lisbon and Valley City on its way. “We know there’s a lot of people swamped, and as the water comes up, they’re being surrounded,” Laney said.

The city of Davenport built a clay dike about 300 yards long on its west side, where overland flooding from the Sheyenne is expected to bump up against the dike and railroad tracks as early as Sunday. “It’s a slow, agonizing, watch-it-come-this-way kind of thing,” Mayor Jason Lotzer said.

Davenport firefighters plan to use 10,000 sandbags trucked in from Fargo to protect a half-dozen rural homes between Davenport and Kindred.

Water spilling from the Sheyenne’s banks was running through Jim and Julie Gunkelman’s farmyard southwest of Kindred. Jim Gunkelman’s pickup pulled a trailer with three horses inside as he followed a Richland County sheriff’s deputy across a flooded gravel road. He was moving the horses to a neighbor’s place at the top of a nearby hill. “We’re just erring on the side of caution,” he said. “If we lose the road and we need to get them out, we’ve got a problem.”

To the east, two U.S. Border Patrol agents on ATVs plowed through water after checking on residents in three houses cut off by overland flooding. The neighbors were helping each other build ring dikes, said Agent Chris Michaloski, who usually is stationed in Oswego, N.Y., on Lake Ontario. “It’s just amazing how the communities all come together,” he said.

Gunkelman was hopeful the rising waters wouldn’t reach his house, but he said he hasn’t seen so much water since he moved to the farm in 1975. “It’s gonna be close,” he said.

Anderson and her husband, Dale, and other family members and friends took turns every two hours manning two wet/dry vacuums, a squeegee and two sump pumps to suck water out of the basement. She expects they will be housebound for a total of four or five weeks as the Sheyenne slowly recedes.

Anderson said that while the driveway into their yard is under several inches of water, this year’s flood hasn’t been as bad as the ’97 flood, when they had to canoe to their mailbox. The couple have endured several floods since they bought the home in 1976, but they love the beauty of the riverfront property, she said. “I always say to my husband, ‘It’s been 33 years, do you think we should move now?’ ‘No,’ he says, ‘this is just temporary.’ And it is,” she said.

_____________________________________

Here's an exert from another article in the inForum by Sherri Richards:

Sheyenne fluctuates while Red falls

In Cass County, volunteers built ring dikes around farmsteads in the “hot zone between Kindred and Davenport,” said Matt Palluck, assistant fire chief in Davenport.

Local farmers hauled in pallets of sandbags from surrounding communities no longer in the midst of a flood fight.

“We’re keeping our fingers crossed,” Palluck said Saturday. “We could be done sandbagging today or tomorrow, then we’ll keep an eye on the water. We’ve had a lot of volunteers. We’ve had some of the best cooks in the valley here.”

The earthen dike west of Davenport was to be completed by Saturday afternoon, but local officials were keeping an eye on a railroad crossing two miles south and one mile east of town.

“If that were to break, then we’d have water coming into the south and east,” Palluck said. “It would start filling up a couple sections on the south end of town, which would give us a different problem.”

The Cass County Sheriff’s Department continued boating operations Saturday, including one rescue operation in Richland County. Two adults and three dogs were evacuated.

Valley City Flood

Originally Valley City had a "Volunteer Evacuation". That changed to a "recommended evacuation". Now it's a "required evacuation". One of their lift stations gave out and the downtown area is being flooded with SEWER WATER. Yuck! Brown water is shooting out of man holes and any drain that wasn't previously plugged. ALL water usage is prohibited...and there is no sewer.

Even though the river has crested in Valley City...there is still a lot of pressure on the dikes which they continually patch. The same goes for Lisbon. The river is steady at the same height and will be for a couple weeks. ALL roads going out/in to town, except one, are under water. Lisbon's river water is starting to reach the Kindred area today

Overland Flood Fight near Kindred

This is what Valley News Live says about our current flood situation:

People living in areas that have been dry in recent days are getting ready for a second wave of water. In some cases, they can expect more water than they saw at the end of March, and maybe more than they saw in 1997.

Close to Kindred, the Sheyenne River has broken out of its banks, and is now flowing out of roads, like this one. It's going to get worse over the next few days, because the Sheyenne reached its peak volume upstream in Lisbon today. All of that water will arrive here in two to three days, and then push north, where people who are miles away from the river find themselves in it path. Once all this water gets here, it's going to stay for anywhere from two to three weeks. Kindred is receiving pre-filled sandbags from Fargo/Moorhead. If that changes, they'll let people know if there is a need for volunteers.

http://www.valleynewslive.tv/artman2/publish/local_regional_news/11501.shtml


Here's some TV footage from WDAY TV:
http://link.brightcove.com/services/player/bcpid17426737001?bclid=17512524001&bctid=20000882001

This is what Steve Hall, our School Superintendent says:
Here is an update on few items as we stand today. Things could change
over the weekend.

Prom is postponed to next Saturday. I believe this is the best decision
based on so many unknowns at this time. Everything from water,
sandbagging of rural homes, road closures and / or potential no travel
advisories in the area.
The Prom decorations in the gym will stay until next week. So please do
not send students into the gym. PE teachers this will definitely affect
you but it does appear the weather next week will be cooperative and we
should be able to be outside.

As of now we are planning to have school on Monday.

I will be visiting with the Army Core/City of Kindred/City of Davenport
this weekend to assess any changes for school. We are planning to run our
bus routes and there may be some added miles to routes but we plan to
pickup and dropoff students at the same locations as this week. As the
week goes on we may need to make some adjustments if roads get closed to
the west of Kindred.
Changes to this will be relayed by the media, calling tree, and our
website.

NOTE:
The amount of water that will be flowing out of the Sheyenne River south
of 46 by Sunday is estimated to be at a rate of 9,000 cfs.....this was the
amount in Lisbon yesterday(water from Lisbon to Kindred takes 2-3 days).
The water rate at Kindred yesterday was 6000 cfs.
What this volume of extra/more water (3,000cfs) will do when it flows
out of the river banks on Saturday night into Sunday is unknown. If it
flows to the areas they are predicting (like is happening now) then the
towns of Kindred and Davenport are not at risk, thus we plan to have
school. If the towns and schools become compromised then school will be
closed.

SANDBAG HELP!!
Kindred rural houses south & west of Kindred and north to Davenport may
need help sandbagging tonight and tomorrow. Contact City Hall (428-3115)
or Emergency Center (356-4615)
Davenport is looking for volunteers tonight, 5 PM @ Fire Hall and
Saturday, 9 AM @ Fire Hall.

In both cases this is not filling sandbags is would be laying sandbags. (I
think!!) Fargo is sending out many sandbags.

Flood Update

The Red River is falling. But next week it is supposed to come up again...a 2nd crest. The first crest was an all time record...40.8 ft. This new crest will not be as high but it will equal 1997's 100 yr record 39 feet. We may have a 3rd crest the last week of April or the first week of May says weather forecaster, John Wheeler...because the ground is so saturated. So everyone is strengthening their sandbag dikes.

On Wednesday, North High School students were let out of school to help sandbag. They had unexpected help by the Harlem Globe Trotters. On Thursday, South High students were let out of school to help. They had unexpected help from the USA Hockey Team. (Currently Fargo is hosting the World Hockey Competition for men 18 and younger.)

Everyone feels pretty confident about controlling the Red River. The Sheyenne river is a whole different story. The Sheyenne River keeps going up and up. Water everywhere! We bus drivers have to stay on paved roads only because many of the gravel roads are under water or washed away. Hwy 16 is also under water in two places.

.

Here's what today's paper says:

An expert on flood control warned rural Cass County residents Thursday that the Sheyenne River is expected to reach unprecedented levels in the upcoming second crest. Jeff Volk, an engineer who advises local governments on flood control, briefed residents at a meeting organized by Cass County officials to help prepare for the second crest on the Red River and its tributaries.“They’re telling us on the Sheyenne River it’s going to be more than they’ve ever seen,” Volk said. Residents should prepare for overland flooding because the Sheyenne will overflow its banks, especially south of Horace, N.D., to Kindred, N.D., he said.

Valley City and Lisbon are struggling. I just heard a man on TV say that where he lives, the river went up 10 feet in 24 hr, yesterday. The Sheyenne River is already 2 feet above the record high and all that extra water is heading towards Kindred.

We are also dealing with overland flooding. Some of that is starting to recede. With 50 degree temps forecasted for the next few days...we should see the end of the snow......well maybe most of it...but first a little more flooding. Here's a picture that I took this morning of the receding water. Until now all the fields have been lakes....and lakes....and lakes.

Today I helped sandbag the home of a couple kids on my bus. They live just south of Horace. They had a system worked out. They set up two chairs...put a ladder between them...between the runs of the ladder they place upside down orange cones that had their points cut off. One person would put three shovels of sand into the upside down cone, while another person, sitting on an upside down pail would hold up a bag to catch the sand as it went through the cone. Another person would carry off the bag. It worked slick. You can see this process in this picture that I took: (the empty seat..err, pail...was my seat before I got up to take the picture.)

I left just before noon when this family's church showed up to help. After having lunch, I drove back by the area. In a two block area there were tons of people sandbagging. There were emergency vehicles with lights flashing. There were two Red Cross vans and one Salvation Army van. Wow! .....And did I mention that KVLY TV came this morning and took videos of us? We'll be on the news tonight!

Two more pictures to help put things in perspective. We still have a lot of snow. Granted most of it will go within the next couple days because of the warm temps...but the snow bank next to my car is still taller than my car:

And where is all this snow going to go? (The bottom picture was taken on the North side of our yard.)There is still a lot of snow that needs to melt. The ground is saturated..so where is it going to go?...and rain is in the forecast... Hm-m-m. So the bottom line is..."It isn't done yet."

note: all these pictures were taken today. I got up early to get a couple of them. While I'm driving my school bus, I often think that I wish I could stop and take a picture...well, today there was no school, so I took my camera for a ride. None of the pictures have been enhanced. (You may have been wondering about the one at the top of the page.) It's fun to take shots early in the day when the colors are so brilliant!

Sierra Looking in the Mirror

While we were shopping I happened to catch Sierra on video without her knowing. Ha Ha. Check out her pose when she realizes that she's being filmed.

Shoot. I rotatated this video before uploading it...but now I see that it reverted to the horizontal format. I'll have to figure out how to change it.. For now, just tilt your head.....a little to the left...a little more... there that should do it. :)

Happy Birthday Jen!

Our youngest daughter, Jenny, turned 22 years old today!

Yesterday my granddaughter, Sierra and I brought Jen a mini birthday cake to her at work. Today Sierra and I went shopping.
Sierra found some Winnie-the-Pooh stickers for Jen.

We met Jen and Jamie (our oldest daughter - Sierra's mom) at Paradiso's for lunch. These pictures were taken at the restaurant.

Jason on a Snowboard in Colorado