[Congressional Record Volume 143, Number 51 (Friday, April 25, 1997)]
[Senate]
[Pages S3702-S3703]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                       DISASTERS IN NORTH DAKOTA

  Mr. CONRAD. Mr. President, I rise today to again update my colleagues 
on the extraordinary set of disasters that we have experienced in my 
home State of North Dakota.
  As the President knows, we have had really an extraordinary set of 
events. First of all, the toughest winter in our history with over 10 
feet of snow that fell in North Dakota, the most we have ever had, 
followed by, in the first week of April, the most powerful winter storm 
in 50 years that saw nearly 2 feet of snow fall in much of the State. 
It was accompanied by an ice storm that took down the electrical grid 
for 80,000 people in my State who were without power for a week.
  On top of that, there were 70-mile-an-hour winds that were 
devastating. Then we followed that with a flood that has been termed a 
``500-year flood.'' But we are now told in testimony yesterday the 
National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration indicated it was 
a 1,000-year flood.
  In the midst of all that, the city of Grand Forks, a city of 50,000, 
is almost entirely evacuated, the largest evacuation of a city that we 
have seen in the United States in anyone's memory. Virtually the entire 
city, 95 percent of the city, has been evacuated and have been told 
they may not be back in their homes for as much as a month.
  Truly an extraordinary set of events.
  Today, I would like to thank President Clinton for traveling to North 
Dakota to see the devastation firsthand. I would also like to thank the 
Cabinet officials who traveled with the President, including Health and 
Human Services Secretary Donna Shalala. Donna has a twin sister who 
lives in North Dakota and so has a special interest and concern about 
our State.
  Agriculture Secretary Dan Glickman was there. Housing and Urban 
Development Secretary Cuomo was there, and Transportation Secretary 
Slater. I said to Secretary Slater, who has been there three times in 
the last 3 weeks, that he about qualifies for paying North Dakota 
income tax he has been there so often. And, of course, the head of 
FEMA, the Federal Emergency Management Agency, James Lee Witt, has also 
been there three times in the last 3 weeks. We deeply appreciate the 
help that he has brought to our State.
  Also with us were high officials of the Corps of Engineers, who have 
waged a valiant fight. Let me just say that they were fighting this 
flood in 83 spots up and down the Red River Valley. They won many of 
those battles. We lost a fight in Grand Forks, but I want to make clear 
it was not because the corps did not wage a valiant and heroic effort. 
I think everyone in our State would say the Corps of Engineers has just 
done a superb job.
  Mr. President, we now face the difficult task of recovery. We will be 
considering a disaster supplemental bill in the committee next Tuesday.
  I want to just share briefly with my colleagues photographs from 
Grand Forks and from other parts of eastern North Dakota so people can 
see for themselves what has happened.
  This shows part of downtown Grand Forks. As someone said to me, it 
looks like Dresden after the firebomb. After the flood completely 
swamped the city, 90 percent of the town was flooded, a town of 50,000 
people. A fire then broke out that burned much of three blocks of 
downtown Grand Forks.
  As you can see, this is one of the buildings that was gutted. 
Included in buildings that were destroyed were the newspaper, Grand 
Forks Herald, which has already announced plans to rebuild, and also 
the largest bank was destroyed. So we have had just one set of 
extraordinary occurrences after another.
  I talked to one man who called me. He said, ``Senator, I'm over in 
Detroit Lakes, MN. My home has been destroyed. I did not have flood 
insurance because I was outside the 100-year flood plain. Nobody 
thought there was any threat to us. My business has been destroyed. All 
of my inventory is gone. I was trying to reach my insurance agent to 
find out if I had any coverage, but of course I have no idea where he 
is. He's been evacuated to some other town.''
  He said, ``I tried to call my banker, but my bank burned down. So I 
have no idea what the status of my accounts are there in terms of 
what's happened to receipts. I have 80 employees, and I'm responsible 
for their livelihood. I have no idea where they are. They were 
evacuated to different towns.''

  He said, ``My wife turned to me when we were considering all this, 
and she said, `Well, you know, let's remember what's important. We have 
our lives. We're healthy. And we can come back.' ''
  That is the attitude that has pervaded this community. I am just 
going

[[Page S3703]]

to say how proud I am of the people who have that attitude--that we are 
going to rebuild, we are going to come back. But it is not going to be 
easy, Mr. President.
  This picture shows a wider shot of the fire devastation. Here you can 
see an entire row of buildings that are absolutely gutted. By the way, 
they have already started the process of tearing down these buildings 
even though the flood water remains.
  This is a picture taken in the residential district. It shows a house 
that has been floated right off of its foundation. There are thousands 
and thousands of homes flooded in this community. Ninety percent of the 
community--I think roughly 12,000 homes--many of them are absolutely 
destroyed. They are up to their eaves as you fly over much of this 
community. All you see are rooftops, and many homes have been forced 
right off their foundations.
  The pressure and the current running here looks placid. It looks 
placid, but in fact there is a very strong current. My colleague, 
Senator Dorgan, just took a boat tour with the Coast Guard. They told 
him if anybody falls out of this boat, you are in deep trouble because 
the current is so strong it will suck you right down. So these are the 
conditions that people are having to deal with in Grand Forks.
  This is another shot down one of the streets leading to the 
University of North Dakota. You can see these vehicles are completely 
engulfed in the flood water. As Senator Dorgan said, as he went in this 
boat, at one point they hit something, and they realized they had gone 
over a car in this boat as they went through the flood waters. In some 
places the water is 10 feet deep.
  This is a picture of a church and graveyard. This is not in the city. 
This is out in the country. This shows how widespread the flooding is. 
This is miles from the city of Grand Forks. Yet you can see on the 
gravestones how deep the water is. And it is still there.
  This is a shot, and the last picture I will show, and it perhaps is a 
little hard to make out because it is a shot that was taken and 
provided to us by CBS News. I took a CBS News crew with me on a 
helicopter tour north of Grand Forks. This is something that is an 
untold story. The focus, understandably, has been on Grand Forks 
because of the remarkable set of events there. The untold story, now 
told by CBS News because they were the first to see it, is what has 
happened north of Grand Forks. Perhaps it is hard to make out. But what 
you are seeing here, as far as the eye can see--and we are up in a 
helicopter; this is a picture taken out of the helicopter--as far as 
the eye can see, it is water.
  It is the most remarkable thing I have ever seen. We were at many 
places as we flew north from Grand Forks, which is 75 miles from the 
Canadian border, and we flew within 8 miles of the Canadian border. The 
entire way the river has expanded--not just river flooding but overland 
flooding from the extraordinary snowfall. The combination has led to a 
body of water 30 miles wide. As far as the eye can see, it is water.
  You can see, here are some roads that are built-up roads. These are 
roads that are on raised elevations. You can see where they are flooded 
as well even though they are 3 to 4 feet above the farmlands. So you 
can see this water is 3 to 4 feet deep, in some places as much as 8 
feet deep, and 30 miles wide. It is simply extraordinary.
  Mr. President, I will end the presentation there just to say we will 
be considering the disaster supplemental next week. I ask my colleagues 
to help us pass that expeditiously and to provide the assistance that 
is so desperately needed, not only in North Dakota but neighboring 
Minnesota and South Dakota as well.
  I thank the Chair and yield the floor.
  Mr. KENNEDY addressed the Chair.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Massachusetts is recognized 
for 20 minutes.
  Mr. KENNEDY. Mr. President, first of all, I thank our friend and 
colleague from North Dakota for his excellent presentation. All of the 
citizens in that part of the country have the extraordinary admiration, 
I think, of all Americans, certainly my region of the Nation, for their 
determination and courage and perseverance in facing this extraordinary 
act of nature.
  We just want you to know from our area of the country that we want to 
cooperate and help and assist and will support your initiatives and 
other initiatives to try to help and assist the people who in so many 
instances lost so much but still have not lost their spirit. So we are 
full of admiration for their inner strength and for their resolution. I 
think all Americans have been very moved by what has happened out 
there, and we are eager to try to provide whatever help and assistance 
we can.

  I thank the Senator very much for his statement.

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