BISMARCK, N.D. (AP) — With the guarantee of federal money to help manage flooding in Devils Lake, North Dakota Gov. Jack Dalrymple and other officials said Thursday they are close to finishing their flood control plan.
Dalrymple met with a group of federal, state and city officials to discuss the progress of a 24-point "action plan" for dealing with the rising levels of the lake in northeastern North Dakota.
The Devils Lake basin already is plagued with washed out roads and evacuated homes, and officials fear a rapid spring thaw could push water over a wall of sediment that keeps the lake from entering the nearby Sheyenne River.
Gushing water could erode the wall, called the Tolna Coulee, which would overwhelm the river and cause flooding as far south as Fargo, said Col. Michael Price, district engineer with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.
"It's an urgent situation," Price said. "If the water erodes that plug, it could be catastrophic. Valley City and anywhere else along the Sheyenne could be flooded out."
On Monday, President Barack Obama added Devils Lake to a list of presidential emergencies, meaning the federal government may pay up to 75 percent of eligible flooding repair costs. The state Legislature earlier approved money to help the city of Devils Lake pay its share.
The plan calls for a new water outlet on the east end of the lake, which would more than double the amount of water that can be drained into the Sheyenne. Officials estimate the project will cost between $60 million and $90 million, and said they will begin taking bids on it by the end of the month.
The proposal also would expand the current outlet on the lake's west end and build a metal wall on top of the Tolna Coulee, Price said.
Construction on the new outlet will begin this summer and could be completed by June 2012, officials said. Devils Lake Mayor Dick Johnson, who noted that a school bus and fire truck have gotten stuck on flooded roads in the past week, thanked the panel for its efforts but said they may not be quick enough to solve the city's problems.
"Nature hasn't been kind to us, and because of that, we may be falling short," Johnson told the committee. "What do we do in the meantime, until we get the east end outlet going? Those are real hard questions we need to think about, because it's the meantime that's going to be tough to deal with."
Earlier this month Dalrymple opened a flood assistance center in the gymnasium at Lake Region State College, offering help with any problems caused by flooding. The proposal reviewed Thursday includes a mental health counseling program for residents affected by the swelling lake, which has quadrupled in size since 1993 and engulfed more than 160,000 acres of farmland.
Money to raise roads, build up railroad embankments and compensate people whose land has been flooded is also in the proposal.
Scott Stofferahn, an aide to North Dakota's U.S. Senator Kent Conrad, warned that the budget climate in Washington will make it difficult to get all the federal money the state is seeking.
"We're trying to create an action plan that invests federal resources to come forward and solve this," Stofferahn said. "The current budget circumstances make that a real challenge."
Price said he hopes the panel will finalize its plan when it meets again June 13. The meetings have all been held in Bismarck, but at the request of committee members and residents from the flooded area, Price said he'd consider holding the next one in Devils Lake.
"You can sit and debate, but you really need to see what people up there are living through day to day, because it's a war zone up there for everyone," said Julie Schemionek, who farms northwest of Devils Lake. "We're in the golden hours of this, and 2012 is going to be too late for anything to be done."
Dalrymple met with a group of federal, state and city officials to discuss the progress of a 24-point "action plan" for dealing with the rising levels of the lake in northeastern North Dakota.
The Devils Lake basin already is plagued with washed out roads and evacuated homes, and officials fear a rapid spring thaw could push water over a wall of sediment that keeps the lake from entering the nearby Sheyenne River.
Gushing water could erode the wall, called the Tolna Coulee, which would overwhelm the river and cause flooding as far south as Fargo, said Col. Michael Price, district engineer with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.
"It's an urgent situation," Price said. "If the water erodes that plug, it could be catastrophic. Valley City and anywhere else along the Sheyenne could be flooded out."
On Monday, President Barack Obama added Devils Lake to a list of presidential emergencies, meaning the federal government may pay up to 75 percent of eligible flooding repair costs. The state Legislature earlier approved money to help the city of Devils Lake pay its share.
The plan calls for a new water outlet on the east end of the lake, which would more than double the amount of water that can be drained into the Sheyenne. Officials estimate the project will cost between $60 million and $90 million, and said they will begin taking bids on it by the end of the month.
The proposal also would expand the current outlet on the lake's west end and build a metal wall on top of the Tolna Coulee, Price said.
Construction on the new outlet will begin this summer and could be completed by June 2012, officials said. Devils Lake Mayor Dick Johnson, who noted that a school bus and fire truck have gotten stuck on flooded roads in the past week, thanked the panel for its efforts but said they may not be quick enough to solve the city's problems.
"Nature hasn't been kind to us, and because of that, we may be falling short," Johnson told the committee. "What do we do in the meantime, until we get the east end outlet going? Those are real hard questions we need to think about, because it's the meantime that's going to be tough to deal with."
Earlier this month Dalrymple opened a flood assistance center in the gymnasium at Lake Region State College, offering help with any problems caused by flooding. The proposal reviewed Thursday includes a mental health counseling program for residents affected by the swelling lake, which has quadrupled in size since 1993 and engulfed more than 160,000 acres of farmland.
Money to raise roads, build up railroad embankments and compensate people whose land has been flooded is also in the proposal.
Scott Stofferahn, an aide to North Dakota's U.S. Senator Kent Conrad, warned that the budget climate in Washington will make it difficult to get all the federal money the state is seeking.
"We're trying to create an action plan that invests federal resources to come forward and solve this," Stofferahn said. "The current budget circumstances make that a real challenge."
Price said he hopes the panel will finalize its plan when it meets again June 13. The meetings have all been held in Bismarck, but at the request of committee members and residents from the flooded area, Price said he'd consider holding the next one in Devils Lake.
"You can sit and debate, but you really need to see what people up there are living through day to day, because it's a war zone up there for everyone," said Julie Schemionek, who farms northwest of Devils Lake. "We're in the golden hours of this, and 2012 is going to be too late for anything to be done."
