[Congressional Record Volume 143, Number 41 (Wednesday, April 9, 1997)]
[Senate]
[Pages S2871-S2872]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                      THE DISASTER IN NORTH DAKOTA

  Mr. CONRAD. Mr. President, I rise again today to report to my 
colleagues on the developing disaster in the State of North Dakota. As 
I reported to my colleagues yesterday, we were hit last weekend with 
the most powerful winter storm in over 50 years. We are a State that is 
accustomed to tough storms. But, frankly, we have never seen one quite 
like this. Mr. President, this storm came on top of the worst flooding 
threat in 150 years. So we have a double whammy of a powerful winter 
storm, dumping record amounts of snowfall, in addition to an underlying 
threat of massive flooding, because before this storm hit North Dakota, 
we were faced with a record snowfall in the State of North Dakota, over 
100 inches of snow, before we got dumped on with another anywhere from 
17 to 24 inches in the eastern part of our State.
  As the paper of my hometown reported, ``A Doozy of a Record''--record 
snowfall they are talking about. It is maybe hard to see on the chart 
here. But what they are showing is a major shopping center. These are 
cars, or I guess more accurately they are the tops of cars. That is how 
deep the snow was in my hometown.
  That is not the only place that has been hit. It is across the State 
of North Dakota. This is from the largest city in our State, Fargo, ND. 
The headline there is ``The Worst of Two Seasons.'' They are talking 
about the blizzard on top of the flood.
  Mr. President, this is a truly staggering set of circumstances that 
the people of my State are having to cope with. Just this morning I was 
called by the head of the Corps of Engineers for our district, who 
informed me that although all of the predictions were dire, they have 
now become even worse.
  As of this morning the National Weather Service is telling us that 
the forecasted crest, instead of being 37\1/2\ feet in the city of 
Fargo, our major town in North Dakota, it has now been raised to 39 to 
39\1/2\. Already we are faced with the worst flood in 150 years. We 
were told this morning that this is the 500-year flood level. Of 
course, the dikes were built to accommodate the earlier projections at 
37\1/2\ feet. So the dikes were built to 39\1/2\ feet. Now we are told 
the forecasted crest is 39 to 39\1/2\ feet.
  Mr. President, this could be a calamitous situation. They are telling 
us that the crest will be reached late tomorrow or perhaps early 
Friday.
  I have talked to the Corps of Engineers. They are working feverishly 
to add to the dikes that have already been constructed not only in 
Fargo but right up the Red River Valley--in Harwood and Grand Forks, 
ND--to try in a race against the clock to build these dikes high enough 
to protect the people and the property that is around this river.
  Mr. President, this is the most heavily populated part of my State. 
The disaster that is unfolding is truly staggering in proportion.
  Early Saturday 80,000 people were without power, with wind chills of 
40 below zero. Can you imagine being an elderly person in a home being 
faced with the most powerful winter storm in 50 years without heat? 
That is what is happening in my State. Although great progress is being 
made because of a really heroic effort by people to respond, still 
today 20,000 people are without power and without heat, most of them 
since Saturday.
  Today temperatures outside are hovering near zero in North Dakota, 
and even more threatening, temperatures inside these homes that are 
without heat ranging between 30 and 40 degrees. Not only is the human 
condition being put under great stress but also livestock has been put 
under grave stress in our State. Thousands of cattle are dead.
  I was told yesterday of a ranching family that brought 10 of their 
calves into their home to try to give them protection, and allow them 
to live. All 10 of them died. The cattle were dying because the wind 
was so ferocious that it blew the snow up into their nostrils and they 
suffocated. They can't get to many cattle to feed them because of the 
snowdrifts that are everywhere.
  Mr. President, I thought I would share with my colleagues just some 
of the individual stories that tell the depths of this tragedy.
  A young man froze to death in his pickup when it became stranded only 
1 mile from the small town of Lankin, ND.
  One family that is stranded in its farmhouse due to overland flooding 
is burning its fence posts to keep warm. The water around their house 
was iced over, so neither emergency vehicles nor boats were able to 
rescue them. Another family was forced to snag logs that drifted by in 
flood waters to heat their home.
  The Turtle Mountain band of Chippewas has snowdrifts of up to 15 
feet. Can you imagine a snowdrift of 15 feet that is blocking 
transportation? In fact, emergency crews needed 4 hours to get to a man 
who had a heart attack.
  A man from Wilton, ND, went on the radio in search of hip-length 
waders so that he could wade out to rescue 120 sheep that are caught up 
in the flood waters.

  An elderly couple was trapped inside their home due to a 6-inch layer 
of ice that had formed over their doors and windows; trapped in their 
own home because ice had formed around the doors and windows and they 
could not get out. An emergency rescue team was sent in to rescue them.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator's 5 minutes are up.
  Mr. CONRAD. I thank the Chair for informing me. If we could now go on 
with leader time, I would appreciate that.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator has 10 minutes.
  Mr. CONRAD. Mr. President, a family in northeastern North Dakota--two 
parents and their 7-year-old--has been without power since Saturday 
with snowdrifts trapping them in their home. They had to sleep huddled 
in the hallway to keep warm.
  Seventy-five people have been stuck in the basement of the Hebron 
city hall because their cars were pulled off of the major highway going 
by as that road became impassable. Those 75 people have been stuck 
there since Saturday.
  Officials in Cass County, the most populous county of our State, are 
having difficulty responding to emergency calls because the water 
surrounding many homes is frozen. So they can't get there by wheel 
vehicles and they can't get there by boat. There is no

[[Page S2872]]

way to get to people in order to extricate them.
  Mr. President, there has been a tremendous response, not only by 
volunteers in our State but also by the agencies attempting to cope 
with this disaster.
  I want today to thank the President for responding so quickly in 
declaring our State a Presidentially declared disaster. This is our 
second Presidentially declared disaster of this year. We are only in 
the fourth month of this year. We already had a Presidentially declared 
disaster because of the record amounts of snowfall. Now on top of that 
we are anticipating a record flood.
  These are truly difficult times for our State. Many homes are still 
without power. We need generators and fuel to heat homes, make certain 
that essential services are up and operating. My State needs special 
heavy equipment to clear snow and ice from roads to allow for emergency 
access.
  This is a snowfall that is unlike any we have seen because it 
happened with a freezing rain and then snowfall, and so the snowpack 
that is there is like concrete. That is what the people who are out 
there trying to fight this mess are telling us. They have never seen a 
snowpack like this. We had rain on top of snow, it froze, and it is 
like concrete trying to break through these incredible snowdrifts.
  I also want to recognize FEMA and the capable administrator there, 
James Lee Witt, who is coming to my State tomorrow. FEMA has responded 
marvelously to the needs in North Dakota. I also wish to thank the 
Corps of Engineers that is involved in a really heroic effort. Some of 
these people have been working around the clock with no sleep for days 
attempting to build these dikes higher as the flood crest forecasts 
keep increasing.
  I just want to say on behalf of the people of my State how much we 
appreciate the extraordinary response of the Corps of Engineers and of 
the Federal Emergency Management Agency.
  I would also like to thank the president of Manitoba Hydro, Bob 
Brennan. We were alerted by the Governor; they were having trouble 
getting people across our border. We got the Immigration and 
Naturalization Service to provide an immediate 2-week waiver on all of 
their requirements at the border. We talked to Manitoba Hydro and they 
committed to sending 100 people to our State to help rebuild the 
transmission facilities. Now, that is real neighborliness, and we 
appreciate very much that our neighbor to the north has responded in 
this most generous way of sending 100 people to help us rebuild the 
transmission facilities in our State.
  I would also like to thank the Internal Revenue Service. This is 
something we rarely do. They have indicated that they would practice 
forbearance on our individual income tax payers in the State of North 
Dakota by allowing them to file by May 30 without late payment 
penalties. They will be asked to pay interest on the money during the 
period that they would have paid, but they are being given until May 
30. If they file and if they pay by that date, they will not be hit by 
any late-payment penalties. I am told that they are applying this same 
standard to every State and every county that receives a Presidentially 
declared disaster in the face of what is happening in many parts of the 
country.
  We struggle to find good news in all of this, hopeful news. But I can 
tell you there is good news and there is hopeful news, and that is the 
spirit of the people. In North Dakota, we say we have a yes, we can 
attitude, and that is exactly what we have seen in coping with these 
disasters. As one emergency official said to me, Senator, I have seen 
blizzards; I have seen floods; I have seen power outages, but I have 
never seen all three together at the same time.
  That is what we are coping with in North Dakota. I must say that can-
do spirit has served us well. Not only do North Dakotans show that 
spirit, but I must say these Federal agencies that have come to help 
are also showing that spirit, and we deeply appreciate it.
  I thank the Chair and yield back the remainder of my time.
  I yield the floor. I note the absence of a quorum.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll.
  The legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll.
  Mr. WELLSTONE. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order 
for the quorum call be rescinded.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  Mr. WELLSTONE. I thank the Chair.

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