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Flood of 2007
A look at the raw numbers shows that the heavy rainfall and the floods that followed were historical.
Rainfall amounts :
Columbia: 9.44 inches.
Aberdeen: 7.97 inches. Two miles east of Aberdeen: 9.12 inches.
Redfield: 8.02 inches.
Seven miles west of Groton: 7.22 inches.
Six miles southeast of Aberdeen: 6.75 inches.
Ashton: 6.61 inches.
One mile south of Chelsea: 6.6 inches.
Hecla: 5.79 inches. -
Inspectors declare some homes uninhabital
Many homes in Aberdeen were condemned and deemed unsafe to live in following the flood. City building inspectors had done a few door-to-door inspections, but they concentrated mostly on visiting the homes of people who have requested an inspection. -
Feds declare disaster
Federal disaster dollars were available for parts of South Dakota damaged by flooding. The declaration made federal funds available to supplement state and local recovery efforts. Eligible counties included Beadle, Brown, Clark, Davison, Hanson, Hutchinson, Miner, Sanborn, Spink and Yankton. Sen. John Thune said the Federal Emergency Management Agency will make available $7 million for individual assistance for people in those counties. -
Brown County prepares for flooding
Brown County-area residents and officials are prepared for more flooding after rains and thawing snow caused area rivers to swell.
Officials from the National Weather Service office in Aberdeen said flooding continued along the James River near Ashton, Stratford and especially Columbia, where water levels rose to 17 feet --- 3 feet above flood stage. -
Westport grapples with Elm River
Around town, residents loaded up refrigerators, stoves, mattresses and other items onto trailers to take away from town. Earlier in the day, officials issued a voluntary evacuation and residents took it very seriously, said Scott Meints, Brown County emergency management director. -
Spring planting setback; Wet fields force farmers to adjust plans
Come April 1, may farmers are usually in the fields, planting wheat. But because of flooding and recent storms, many area farmers - and officials - expect planting to begin later this year. "This probably will go down in history as one of the worst springs ever, I believe," said Dennis Mitchell, who farms between Columbia and Houghton. -
Flooding woes continue - Evacuations advised in Dickey County
Officials in Dickey County, N.D., called for a voluntary evacuation of all homes around the James River on Thursday night as flooding continued to intensify in North Dakota and South Dakota. As water continues to flow downstream, it could cause further problems in the Columbia and Stratford areas, Meints said.
"That water has to come south sometime," he said. -
Farmers drowning in water worries
Cattle losses mounting, many fields unable to be planted "Man oh man, losses in feed yards are big," said Bill Richter of rural Hecla. Calving of about 300 cows has begun on his farm on the west side of the flooded James River. Richter said he has lost cattle because of all the mud and the health problems associated with mud. "This is as tough as I have ever seen it," said Richter, who has been farming for 36 years. -
Aberdeen left afloat following torrential rainstorm
Rain poured in Aberdeen, flooding streets, filling basements and even leading to sewage backup in some homes. While some residents in the north and west parts of town reported getting upwards of 3.5 inches, other parts of town got less than an inch. Only 0.97 inch was reported at the airport, said Jim Scarlett, meteorologist in charge at the National Weather Service in Aberdeen. The rain, which fell quickly and hard, also caused scattered power outages throughout Aberdeen. -
Rains flood Edmunds County roads
Numerous Edmunds County roads flooded from a storm that dumped up to 4 inches of rain in parts of the county late Monday and early Tuesday. Long stretches of road were under 5 to 6 inches of water in many areas, but none needed to be closed, said Lenny Ulrich, Edmunds County highway superintendent. "Culverts just can't keep up." -
Report shows high chance of flooding at several James River locations
Brown and Spink county residents along the James River braced for major spring flooding, Scott Meints, Emergency Management director, said the National Weather Service flood report indicated an 86 percent chance of major flooding of the James at Ashton. There's a 77 percent chance of major flooding at Columbia and a 72 percent chance at Stratford. -
Major flooding certain
It becomes certain that there will be major James River flooding at Ashton, Columbia and Stratford, according to the National Weather Service's updated spring flood potential outlook. The reports show a likelihood greater than 98 percent of severe river flooding for those towns. -
Water conservation sought, high flows might lead to sewage in Moccasin Creek
Water conservation was sought because high flows might lead to untreated sewage winding up in Moccasin Creek
All Aberdeen residents were being asked to conserve water and move their sump pump hoses outside as issues continue with the town's sanitary sewer system. Photo - Damian Bahr, center, moves a sandbag into place in the back yard of Mike Ernst, far left, as they and Jesse Milbrandt, behind Bahr and Dave Fair, behind Ernst, worked to keep Moccasin Creek from encroaching Ernst's home. -
Moccasin Creek rising
Aberdeen residents were forced to deal with flooding as the Moccasin Creek passed flood stage. The creek rose about a half a foot, said Robin Bobzien, city engineer and public works director. "It's affecting us," Bobzien said. "We haven't seen a crest. It's still going up, but it's a flat rise." Photo - Moccasin Creek covers part of the bike path between Milwaukee Avenue and Third Avenue Southeast. photo by john davis taken 3/16/2010 -
Flooding upends lives in Claremont area
Sara Frey's commute became a little more complicated because of flooded water. The drive from her family's farm to her job at the 4 Seasons Cooperative elevator in Claremont jumped from five miles to 27. Her story isn't unusual in this town, where flooding has left most roads into town damaged at best or impassable at worst. Some roads have water over them. Others are so damaged that once-asphalt roads look like dirt paths with ruts deep enough that a car could get stuck in. -
Water surrounds Redfield-area homes
Four homes near Redfield Lake are surrounded by water, said Spink County emergency manager Larry Tebben. That lake is on the west side of Redfield. At one home, the water was close to the first floor on Wednesday. At the rest of them, the water was around their foundations. The owners of those homes did not sandbag, Tebben said. "They're pumping water, doing what they can." -
Brown county residents told to prepare for flooding
Brown County has a fifth season. And local residents should already be planning for flooding season, which follows winter and precedes spring, said Scott Meints, county Emergency Management director. "You need to prepare now, not when this is happening," Meints said -
Water rising for some in area, 10 roads closed because of flooding
About 10 Brown County roads were closed because they were under water, according to Brown County Emergency Management Director Scott Meints. There had been numerous reports of washed-out township roads from the east side of the county from east of Hecla down to the Ferney area, Meints said. "It's becoming a travel issue for that area," he said. -
Waubay area threatened by rising lake waters
Waubay residents braced for flooding as water levels in Blue Dog, Big Rush, Little Rush and Bitter Lake continued to rise. Waubay is being pinched on three sides by rising lake levels, and no one in town seems unaffected. "Several families have already moved out of the community," said Mayor Kevin Jens. "Many others constantly have water in their basement. It comes to the point where we have to ask what is going to happen to those homes." -
Flood damage in Brown County worse than expected
There's so much flood damage in Brown County that federal officials needed a full workweek to assess it all. In 2010 that job took about two days, Scott Meints, Brown County Emergency Management director, told commissioners. He said Federal Emergency Management Agency officials were dumbfounded by the amount of damage. It's worse than expected and worse than it was a year ago, Meints said. -
Flooded roads inspire party in Hecla
Surrounded by floodwaters and feeling isolated, some Hecla-area neighbors decided it was time to again get to know each other. About a dozen folks who can't easily make it to town, gathered at a home along flooded County Road 5, fired up the grill and enjoyed a pleasant spring evening. -
Flooded Highway 12 to be raised near Roscoe
A stretch of U.S. Highway 12 east of Roscoe needed to be raised about seven feet. The state Transportation Commission amended its five-year plan to add the $4 million project. The highway was under water and open only to truck traffic. -
City discarges wastewater into Moccasin Creek after downpour
The discharge into Moccasin Creek began after Aberdeen's wastewater treatment plant was taking in 22.5 million gallons because of heavy rainfall, The plant had an intake of 19 million gallons, It is designed for a maximum intake of 9 million gallons per day, and Aberdeen's normal flow is about 3 million gallons, Badten said. The treatment plant was directly discharging 6 million gallons of water into Moccasin Creek per day. -
U.S. Highway 12 open near Roscoe
The stretch of U.S. Highway 12 that was being raised near Roscoe was opened.
