[Congressional Record Volume 153, Number 148 (Tuesday, October 2, 2007)]
[House]
[Pages H11081-H11085]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




            EXPRESSING SYMPATHY FOR MIDWESTERN FLOOD VICTIMS

  Mr. WALZ of Minnesota. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and

[[Page H11082]]

agree to the resolution (H. Res. 657) expressing heartfelt sympathy for 
the victims of the devastating thunderstorms that caused severe 
flooding during August 2007 in the States of Illinois, Iowa, Minnesota, 
Ohio, and Wisconsin, and for other purposes, as amended.
  The Clerk read the title of the resolution.
  The text of the resolution is as follows:

                              H. Res. 657

       Whereas during August 2007, severe thunderstorms were 
     responsible for bringing as much as 18 inches of torrential 
     rain to parts of the States of Illinois, Iowa, Minnesota, 
     Ohio, and Wisconsin, resulting in devastating floods;
       Whereas these storms tragically took the lives of 14 
     people;
       Whereas these storms injured countless other people, 
     damaged or destroyed thousands of homes, and devastated 
     businesses and institutions;
       Whereas on August 21, 2007, the Governor of Minnesota 
     declared Fillmore, Houston, Steele, Olmsted, Wabasha, and 
     Winona Counties, Minnesota, to be in a state of disaster as a 
     result of these storms, and subsequently Dodge County, 
     Minnesota, received a Federal major disaster declaration as 
     well;
       Whereas on August 19, 2007, and in the days following, the 
     Governor of Wisconsin declared Crawford, La Crosse, Richland, 
     Sauk, Vernon, Columbia, Dane, Grant, Green, Iowa, Jefferson, 
     Kenosha, Racine, and Rock Counties, Wisconsin, to be in a 
     state of disaster as a result of these storms;
       Whereas on August 22, 2007, and in the days following, the 
     Governor of Iowa declared Appanoose, Boone, Calhoun, 
     Cherokee, Davis, Humboldt, Mahaska, Palo Alto, Pocahontas, 
     Van Buren, Wapello, Wayne, and Webster Counties, Iowa, to be 
     in a state of disaster as a result of these storms;
       Whereas on August 22, 2007, the Governor of Ohio declared 
     Allen, Crawford, Hancock, Hardin, Putnam, Richland, Seneca, 
     Van Wert, and Wyandot Counties, Ohio, to be in a state of 
     disaster as a result of these storms;
       Whereas on August 24, 2007, and in the days following, the 
     Governor of Illinois declared Cook, DeKalb, DuPage, Grundy, 
     Lake, LaSalle, Kane, Knox, McHenry, Warren, and Will 
     Counties, Illinois, to be in a state of disaster as a result 
     of these storms;
       Whereas President Bush declared 7 counties in Minnesota, 7 
     counties in Ohio, and 7 counties in Wisconsin to be major 
     disaster areas as a result of these storms, and individuals 
     and families in these areas became eligible for Federal 
     disaster assistance;
       Whereas numerous individuals and entities have selflessly 
     and heroically given of themselves and their resources to aid 
     in the disaster relief efforts; and
       Whereas the catastrophic injury, death, and damage in 
     Illinois, Iowa, Minnesota, Ohio, and Wisconsin would have 
     been even worse in the absence of local relief efforts: Now, 
     therefore, be it
       Resolved,  That the House of Representatives--
       (1) expresses heartfelt sympathy for the victims of the 
     devastating thunderstorms that caused severe flooding during 
     August 2007 in the States of Illinois, Iowa, Minnesota, Ohio, 
     and Wisconsin;
       (2) conveys gratitude to the local, State, and Federal 
     officials and emergency personnel who responded swiftly to 
     the crisis, including emergency management teams in each of 
     the affected States, Michael Chertoff, Secretary of Homeland 
     Security, and David Paulison, Administrator of the Federal 
     Emergency Management Agency;
       (3) recognizes the generous and selfless support of 
     citizens, local businesses, the American Red Cross, the 
     United Way, Catholic Charities, and the Salvation Army; and
       (4) reaffirms support to helping the victims of the 
     flooding rebuild their homes and lives.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from 
Minnesota (Mr. Walz) and the gentleman from Missouri (Mr. Graves) each 
will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Minnesota.


                             General Leave

  Mr. WALZ. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members have 
5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and 
include extraneous material on H. Res. 657.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentleman from Minnesota?
  There was no objection.
  Mr. WALZ of Minnesota. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may 
consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I thank Mr. Graves for joining us today. On August 18 
and 19, torrential rains devastated communities all across the Midwest. 
In less than a 24-hour period, more than 18 inches of rain fell in some 
areas of southeast Minnesota causing severe flooding, mud slides, loss 
of property and loss of life. In my district in southeast Minnesota, 
seven people lost their lives as a result of these sudden and violent 
storms. Countless more were injured. Thousands of homes and businesses 
were damaged and destroyed. In community after community, people 
returned to their homes to discover that priceless family memories, 
literally all they owned, had been washed away in a matter of minutes. 
Roads and bridges had been swept away and must be rebuilt.
  I went to many of these towns countless times. I saw the challenges 
that these people face. Let me give you one example. Rushford, 
Minnesota, sits in the beautiful Driftless area, the rolling hills and 
rich farmland of southeast Minnesota. It is a town of 1,700 people, 
with a vibrant Main Street, a great civic pride, and they are also 
defending State football champions from last year. This town was almost 
completely under water. I entered the town on the morning of the rains 
by boat. There was one small island, a dry bit of land that had a 
church, part of a local school and a city building. That was the only 
part of the town that was above water. People had to take boats to get 
to this island in which they were having meetings, receiving help, and 
even getting started on that very morning of the task of rebuilding.

                              {time}  1100

  Even during the flood itself, Minnesotans were reaching out to their 
neighbor. In Minnesota City, during the worst of the flash floods, 
authorities ran out of all rescue equipment and rescue boats. Residents 
used their own boats to go from house to house, literally plucking 
people off the rooftops and bringing them to safety.
  The response to this disaster has been inspiring. People from all 
across Minnesota and across the Nation have stepped forward to help. 
There have been blood drives, canned food drives, and waves and waves 
of volunteers who have come into the area to offer their help, open 
their hearts and homes.
  This disaster was not limited to Minnesota. Similar storms pounded 
all across my neighboring district, and my good friend from Wisconsin 
(Mr. Kind) experienced devastating damage, as well as Iowa, Illinois 
and Ohio also. All told, 14 people died as a result of these storms and 
the flash floods that it caused.
  This resolution that the House considers today is one very, very 
small, but important way, to recognize the challenging times that these 
individuals have faced and will face. It expresses sympathy for their 
loss and gratitude to the State and Federal officials who responded 
swiftly. This resolution recognizes the generous support given by so 
many and reaffirms the support of this Congress for the flood victims 
and the immediate and heartfelt and serious disaster declaration help 
that came from FEMA and the Federal Government. President Bush was in 
Minnesota within days of this, reaffirming his support.
  I urge my colleagues to support this resolution and to stand with 
Minnesota and those throughout the Midwest who have come through the 
flood waters and are now working to rebuild their lives. I am sorry to 
say, the same area received between 6 and 12 inches of rain in some 
areas last night and is experiencing heavy rains again today.
  We have work to do, but the response so far has been truly inspiring.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. GRAVES. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, House Resolution 657 was introduced by Mr. Walz of 
Minnesota on September 17, 2007. The resolution expresses the heartfelt 
sympathy of the House of Representatives for the victims of severe 
flooding in the States of Illinois, Iowa, Minnesota, Ohio and Wisconsin 
during August of 2007. These storms took the lives of 14 people, 
injured countless others, and damaged or destroyed thousands of homes 
and devastated businesses and institutions.
  In addition, this resolution conveys gratitude to local, State and 
Federal officials and emergency personnel who responded swiftly to the 
crisis. Their selfless actions saved lives and helped their communities 
in their efforts to recover from this disaster.
  Additionally, this resolution is a fitting commendation to the 
generous and selfless support of local citizens, businesses and 
volunteer organizations. They have shown their heroism and compassion 
for their fellow citizens while facing such destruction.

[[Page H11083]]

  The citizens of the States of Illinois, Iowa, Minnesota, Ohio and 
Wisconsin will work hard to rebuild and make every effort to ensure the 
recovery of their communities. In recognition of their efforts, this 
resolution reaffirms our support to help the victims of the flooding 
rebuild their homes and lives. I extend my heartfelt sympathy to all 
those affected by this tragedy, and to their families.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. WALZ of Minnesota. Mr. Speaker, at this time I want to yield as 
much time as he may consume to my colleague, my neighbor and my friend 
from Wisconsin whose district was greatly affected by this flooding. We 
have worked closely on this. It's through Mr. Kind's leadership, 
experience and forcefulness that we were able to secure, I believe 
probably in unprecedented fashion, the support we needed from the 
Federal Government.
  With that, I yield to my friend from Wisconsin.
  (Mr. KIND asked and was given permission to revise and extend his 
remarks.)
  Mr. KIND. Mr. Speaker, I am honored to join Mr. Walz here today to 
offer this resolution expressing our concern and support to the victims 
of the flooding that ravaged our congressional districts and so many 
other States during those fateful days in August, but also to take a 
moment to express our eternal gratitude and thanks to the countless 
numbers of official agencies, to private organizations, to individuals 
who rose to the call of many people in great need during this time.
  I personally saw Mr. Walz and the action that he immediately took 
when I visited southeastern Minnesota along with Senator Klobuchar from 
Minnesota to see some of the damage and get together with many of the 
first responders who were working around the clock to come to the aid 
of so many businesses and families and individuals affected by the 
flooding.
  The rains started on August 18, and it seemed as if they were never 
going to stop. It was literally a torrential downpour; in some areas, 
from 12 to 20 inches in just a very short period of time. It's amazing 
to personally witness the severe devastation that an intense amount of 
rain can accomplish in a very short period of time.
  Fortunately for Mr. Walz and myself, we represent two very beautiful 
congressional districts, but part of that beauty is the fact that we 
have a lot of hills and valleys and coulees that act like a funnel 
effect when you have the so-called ``1,000-year rain'' take place 
within a 24-hour period. That is exactly what happened; the rain came, 
the water backed up and started devastating community after community.
  Unfortunately, at the end of the rain, there were 14 people who lost 
their lives. Fortunately for myself, there were none in my 
congressional district, but we did have some loss of life in Mr. Walz's 
district. There were also three electrocutions associated with the rain 
and the flooding that occurred in Madison.
  Short of loss of life or physical injury, there is nothing more 
devastating than having your personal belongings washed away, whether 
it was in your home or in your businesses or on your farm.
  I was down in one of my communities in the southern part of my 
congressional district, Gays Mills, shortly after the flooding, and 
they described to me horrific conditions where the rain came so quickly 
that within a matter of an hour there was five feet of water standing 
on the main street in their downtown area. I was talking to two teenage 
girls who, that evening, literally left their homes only to see the 
rising water and the swift current coming through the main street; and 
they jumped into a tree in order to get out of the way, it was coming 
so quickly, only to be rescued by a volunteer fire department personnel 
in a boat that took them to high land. You heard countless stories of 
this.
  I guess it's times like this during great personal tragedy when you 
also witness the greatness of humanity and the response that occurred, 
from the various agencies at the Federal, State and local level that 
immediately geared up and started rushing in help and supplies, to the 
private organizations and businesses, to the Salvation Army, Red Cross, 
Catholic charities that were on the ground with their staff and their 
volunteers to provide assistance, to also FEMA.
  One of the fortunate aspects at the time of this tragedy was 
Hurricane Dean didn't hit landfall in the United States, so FEMA, in 
preparation for Hurricane Dean, had a lot of supplies, they had a lot 
of personnel ramped up in the southern part of our country anticipating 
the worst of the hurricane. When it didn't arrive, they were able to 
redeploy a lot of their personnel and resources up to our area to 
provide assistance immediately.
  I also want to take a moment to thank Director David Paulison of 
FEMA, who personally came on an inspection tour shortly after the 
flooding to see the devastation himself, and his office out of the 
Chicago regional office who were there very quickly.
  With the help of Representative Walz and our respective Senators, as 
well as Governor Jim Doyle of WI, we were able to get quick State 
declarations, to be followed by a Natural Disaster Declaration in order 
to provide much-needed relief to the victims of the flooding. There's 
still a lot of work that needs to be done. There's still a lot of 
assistance that is going to have to occur in the community and in our 
respective States to try to make people whole.
  On a lighter, happier note, I was fortunate to be home on Sunday to 
visit Gays Mills during their annual apple festival celebration and 
parade. This was a little more than a month after the floodwaters that 
were 5 feet deep in their town, yet they strove to make sure that they 
were going to keep this celebration, try to keep that continuity of 
tradition in their community. It was a wonderful day; the sun shown on 
us, the kids were having a great time, and that little sense of 
normalcy brought some smiles on a lot of faces in that community.
  But if it wasn't for the quick reaction, again, of the agencies, but 
especially the family, the friends, the neighbors who responded to 
people in need, we could have suffered a fate much worse than what we 
did.
  Again, I want to thank Representative Walz for the work that he did. 
I look forward to continuing the work that still needs to take place, 
because this isn't going to get fixed overnight. It's going to be a 
slow, laborious process. There's nothing worse than being denied access 
to a home or businesses. Just now, people are able to go in and have 
access for the first time.
  Many of our farms, too, were devastated just before the crop was 
supposed to be harvested. Many livestock were lost in the flooding. 
Again, you work so hard and long all year long, and then just at the 
time you are going to go to market with the fruits of your labor, 
something like this takes place.
  We also were fortunate that 20 earthen dams in Vernon County in my 
congressional district held up. It is a great tribute to the engineers 
and their foresight over 20 or 30 years ago that constructed these 
earthen dams that they held up, or the damage and devastation could 
have been much worse if they had given out and those floodwaters had 
released further down the valley.
  So I want to thank all of those that were involved in providing much-
needed and quick assistance to the individuals and to the communities 
that were affected by it. I again want to express my gratitude to FEMA 
and their quick reaction, Director Paulison and his team on the ground. 
But there is still more work to be done. It is good to see in a tragedy 
like this that there is that type of capability, both at the local and 
Federal and State level, in order to come to the aid of many citizens 
who needed it.
  In particular, I would like to thank the many people who were 
involved in the recovery effort, only a few of which are named here. In 
Vernon County: Cindy Ackerman, Glenda Sullivan and the Emergency 
Management staff; Elizabeth Johnson and the Public Health staff; Pamela 
Eitland and the Human Services staff; Gene Cary and the Sheriffs 
Department staff; Mark Rahr and the Viroqua Police Department staff; 
Steve Skrede and the Viroqua Fire Department staff; Kelly Jacobs and 
the Land Conservation staff; Virgil Hanold and the Highway Department 
staff; Pat Peterson and the Aging Department staff; Bethel Butikk Food 
Pantry; Linda Nederlow, Public Information Officer; Thomas Spenner, 
County Board Chair; Cathy Lewison and the Farm Service Agency staff.
  In Crawford County: Roger Martin and the Emergency Management staff; 
Laurel

[[Page H11084]]

Hestetuene of Soldiers Grove; Larry McCarn and Maura Otis of Gays 
Mills; Jerry Moran and Sheriff's Department staff; Ron Leys, County 
Board Chair; Dennis Pelock and the Highway Department staff; Gary 
Knickerbacker; John Baird and the Farm Service Agency staff; Russ Hagen 
and the Land Conservation staff; Sara Ryan and the Human Services 
staff; Gloria Wall and the Public Health staff.
  In La Crosse County: Keith Butler and the Emergency Management staff; 
Lynetta Kopp, Town of Shelby Chair; Dennis Osgood and the Highway 
Department staff; Randy Roeck and the Shelby Fire Department staff; 
Steve Doyle, County Board Chair; Ben Bosshart and the Farm Service 
Agency staff.
  In Richland County: Darin Gudgeon and Emergency Management staff; 
Darrell Berglin and the Sheriff's Department staff; Randy Schoeneberg 
and the Highway Department staff; Ann Greenheck, County Board Chair; 
Jared Reuter and the Farm Service Agency staff; Marianne Stanek and the 
Public Health staff; Cathy Cooper and the Land Conservation staff; Dean 
Winchell and family; Bob Naegele and members of the Pine Valley 
Repeater Club ARES/RACES; Harriet Pedley, Ron Fruit and the WRCO radio 
station staff; Kim Clark and the Richland County Ambulance Service; Wes 
and Michelle Starkey; Richland Center Police Department; Rudy Nigel; 
Ken Anderson; Bob Bindl, Darrell Slama, Brian Jones, Dan Wilson, and 
the staff of the Richland County Fire Departments; Richland Center 
Public Works; DNR Warden Mike Nice and the DNR staff.
  In Sauk County: Jeff Jelink and the Emergency Management staff; Marty 
Krueger, County Board Chair; Randy Stammen and the Sheriff's Department 
staff; Steve Muchow and the Highway Department staff; Cindy Bodendein 
and the Health Department staff; Joe Van Berkel and the Land 
Conservation staff; William Orth and the Human Services staff; Trish 
Vandre and the Commission on Aging staff; Curtis Norgard and the Farm 
Service Agency staff.
  In Grant County: Steve Braun and Julie Loeffelholz, Emergency 
Management; Eugene Bartels, County Board Chair; John Wiederholt and the 
Farm Service Agency staff; Jeffery Kindrai and the Health Department 
staff.
  In Iowa County: Ken Palzkill and the Emergency Management staff; Judy 
Lindholm and the Commission on Aging staff; June Meudt and the Health 
Department staff; Leo Klosterman and the Highway Department staff; Jim 
McCaulley and the Land Conservation staff; Darin Smith and the Social 
Services staff; Mark Masters, County Board Chair; Ned Johnson and the 
Farm Service Agency staff.
  Further, I would like to thank: Ashley Furniture; AmeriCorps 
volunteers; Cheryl Hancock and the American Red Cross staff; Terri 
Leece and the Salvation Army staff; Deacon Richard Sage and the 
Catholic Charities staff; the Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, 
Trade, and Consumer Protection; the Wisconsin State Patrol; the 
Wisconsin Department of Corrections; the Wisconsin Department of 
Natural Resources; the Wisconsin National Guard; the Natural Resources 
Conservation Service; and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.
  Mr. Speaker, I wholeheartedly support this resolution and urge my 
colleagues to join me in voting for its passage.
  Mr. GRAVES. Mr. Speaker, I certainly want to associate myself with 
the words of Mr. Kind and Mr. Walz.
  Mr. Speaker, I have no further speakers, and I yield back the balance 
of my time.
  Mr. WALZ of Minnesota. Mr. Speaker, I say thank you to my colleague 
from Wisconsin, whose leadership and voice was instrumental. I also 
want to thank Mr. Graves. I think it is very important as Americans 
watch, and watch the proceedings on this floor, to understand the 
solidarity that is in this body and to hear my friends from Missouri 
and across the Nation stand with us in time of tragedy and understand 
that we will work together, we will solve these problems. I think it is 
encouraging to understand that we are making progress, we are making 
changes. I applaud that.
  Mr. KIND. Mr. Speaker, if the gentleman will yield, we would be 
remiss, too, if we didn't acknowledge the help and the work that our 
respective staffs did during this time. They were 24/7 on the spot 
trying to provide assistance. I know my staff didn't get much sleep 
during those weeks following the flooding. I know Mr. Walz's staff was 
the same way. I just want to take a moment to acknowledge their hard 
work.
  Mr. WALZ of Minnesota. Mr. Speaker, reclaiming my time, I thank the 
gentleman for that. It absolutely is a team effort in this. I think the 
greatness that is this country is that when in times of tragedy and 
times of need, we can put many, many things aside and come together.
  As Mr. Kind pointed out so clearly, to have Director Paulison from 
FEMA on the ground within a matter of about 72 hours of this tragedy 
and Secretary Chertoff from Homeland Security personally be on the 
ground to assess this, and to have President Bush in Minnesota and 
guarantee that we would get this declaration and then follow through, I 
think the American public should feel very, very good about that.
  We have a lot of work to do, but the word coming out of our district 
and the word going to our staffs as they are working with people is 
that in this tragedy, they felt there was a face on a faceless 
bureaucracy. They felt America was there for them. They felt they could 
count on this body doing everything they could. For that, I thank 
everyone in here. I encourage my colleagues to adopt the resolution to 
show that continued solidarity.
  Mr. OBERSTAR. Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of H. Res. 657, a 
resolution to express sympathy for the victims of the thunderstorms 
that caused severe flooding during August 2007 in the States of 
Illinois, Iowa, Minnesota, Ohio, and Wisconsin.
  I rise once again, as I did in May in the wake of devastating forest 
fire in the Gunflint Trail area in my district and again in August 
after the tragic collapse of the Interstate 35W bridge in Minneapolis, 
to express my heartfelt sympathy to our fellow citizens in Minnesota, 
and in surrounding States, in the aftermath of the destruction.
  These severe floods serve as another reminder of the millions of men 
and women who serve this nation as police officers, firefighters, and 
emergency medical personnel who place themselves in great danger every 
day in order to protect each one of us. These well-trained, highly-
skilled individuals are truly on the front lines in preparing for, 
responding to, and mitigating damages from a variety of hazards. They 
deserve our deepest thanks and respect.
  Twenty-four hours a day, every day of the year, all over this 
country, when any type or tragedy enters our lives, from a medical 
emergency to a large-scale natural disaster, terrorist attack, or other 
incident, our Nation's emergency responders are the first on the scene 
to provide professional services, expert help, aid and comfort. These 
heroic, selfless individuals will tell you they are ``just doing their 
job''.
  We rise today to also acknowledge and praise the support of local 
businesses, the American Red Cross, Catholic Charities, the United Way, 
and the Salvation Army who contributed to the local relief effort. 
Their boundless generosity and caring are just one of the pillars of 
recovery on which we have come to rely.
  While we can never adequately express our gratitude to the 
organizations and the brave men and women who serve as our first 
responders, this resolution is a fitting tribute.
  I strongly support this resolution and urge its passage.
  Mr. PETERSON of Minnesota. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor the 
courageous people of southeastern Minnesota who have banded together to 
rebuild their communities after the devastating floods this past 
August.
  Minnesota has had a tough summer with the unanticipated bridge 
collapse in the Twin cities and now extensive flooding in numerous 
smaller communities. Minnesota is known for its strong spirited 
communities and for how people come together to help one another in 
times of crisis. There is much to be admired in the way Minnesotans 
reached out to help their fellow neighbors.
  It reminds me of how truly devastating storms can be. In 1997 and 
2001, my district saw some terrible flooding along the Red River and 
its tributaries. I remember how hard it was for people to rebuild their 
lives, to have to start all over again after losing everything.
  Flood recovery is a long and hard road, but I know that southeastern 
Minnesota has the support of the Minnesota legislature, the Minnesota 
Congressional Delegation and others across the State who have pitched 
in to help rebuild. I also want to commend the Minnesota National Guard 
and local officials, and those everyday heroes amongst us who saved 
lives, led their communities and helped to provide relief for all who 
needed it.
  My heart goes out to the families that have lost loved ones and to 
those who have suffered injury in that devastating flooding. I pray 
that the healing will be swift and that your communities will recover 
and rebuild, stronger than ever.
  Mr. WALZ of Minnesota. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my 
time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the 
gentleman from Minnesota (Mr. Walz) that the House suspend the rules 
and agree to the resolution, H. Res. 657, as amended.

[[Page H11085]]

  The question was taken; and (two-thirds being in the affirmative) the 
rules were suspended and the resolution, as amended, was agreed to.
  A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.

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