[Congressional Record Volume 143, Number 82 (Thursday, June 12, 1997)]
[Senate]
[Page S5633]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




 RECOGNITION OF BUTLER MACHINERY'S ASSISTANCE DURING THE FLOODS OF 1997

 Mr. JOHNSON. Mr. President, I want to take this opportunity 
today to recognize the important work of individuals at Butler 
Machinery in Rapid City, SD, in ongoing flood recovery efforts in the 
Dakotas.
  Early this year, residents of Minnesota, North Dakota and South 
Dakota experienced relentless snowstorms and bitterly cold 
temperatures. Snowdrifts as high as buildings, roads with only one lane 
cleared, homes without heat for days, hundreds of thousands of dead 
livestock, and schools closed for a week at a time were commonplace. As 
if surviving the severe winter cold was not challenge enough, residents 
of the upper Midwest could hardly imagine the extent of damage Mother 
Nature had yet to inflict with a 500-year flood. Record levels on the 
Big Sioux River and Lake Kampeska forced over 5,000 residents of 
Watertown, SD, to evacuate their homes and left over one-third of the 
city without sewer and water for three weeks. The city of Bruce, SD, 
was completely under water when record low temperatures turned swollen 
streams into sheets of ice.
  The 50,000 residents of Grand Forks, ND, and 10,000 residents of East 
Grand Forks, MN, were forced to leave their homes and businesses as the 
Red River overwhelmed their cities in April. The devastation was 
astounding; an entire city under water and a fire that gutted a 
majority of Grand Forks' downtown. Residents of both cities recently 
were allowed to return to what is left of their homes, and the long and 
difficult process of rebuilding shattered lives is just beginning.
  Butler Machinery offered free transportation of flood relief items, 
including food, clothing, bottled water, and toys to Grand Forks. Many 
families escaped rising flood waters in the dead of night, often with 
only the clothes on their back, and ultimately lost everything in their 
homes. I am pleased to say that Butler Machinery has transported over 
30 truckloads of items so far to Grand Forks, helping families rebuild 
their lives. In addition, Butler Machinery has raised nearly $500,000 
in donations for flood victims.
  While those of us from the Midwest will never forget the destruction 
wrought by this year's floods, I have been heartened to witness first-
hand and hear accounts of South Dakotans coming together within their 
community to protect homes, farms, and entire towns from rising flood 
waters. The selfless actions of the individuals at Butler Machinery 
illustrate the resolve within South Dakotans to help our neighbors in 
times of trouble.
  Mr. President, there is much more to be done to rebuild and repair 
Grand Forks and other impacted communities. The individuals at Butler 
Machinery in Rapid City illustrate how the actions of a community can 
bring some relief to the victims of this natural disaster, and I ask 
you to join me in thanking them for their selfless efforts.

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