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Additional rainfall less significant than expected, area looks to dry out
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By Daniel McGonigle
Argus Managing Editor
As reported earlier this week on hometownargus.com, Governor Pawlenty declared Houston and Fillmore counties as disaster areas.
That triggered additional assessment by FEMA (Federal Emergency Management Agency) officials.
According to Houston county assessment numbers, the flood event from the previous weekend caused $7 million in damage to the counties roads and infrastructure.
“Representatives from FEMA went out with our local agencies and conducted an assessment of their own on Thursday and into Friday afternoon,” reported Kurt Kuhlers, Emergency Management Director for Houston County. “We took them to the damaged areas and they were going to review the information over the weekend and put something together.”
The procedure could lead to a Presidential Declaration as has happened already over much of Iowa including those counties just south of the border of Minnesota.
Crop damage
The $7 million figure does not include damage to area crops. That assessment, also by Houston County officials, shows an estimated $15 million in damage.
“That is taken care of by the Department of Ag.,” said Kuhlers. “Those figures will be a different disaster declaration.”
A bullet dodged
Heading into the later part of the week, all eyes were on the skies. The forecast called for rain over much of the weekend, and for much of the area.
Some portions of the county saw two inches of rain fall late Wednesday night and into Thursday. However, significant amounts did not accumulate and therefore the county dodged a bullet.
“We monitored the situation and worked closely with the National Weather Service,” said Kuhlers. “We’ve been monitoring the river’s flood stages and those have gone down significantly over the weekend. Everything has dropped.”
While the forecast calls for a bit of rain on Friday, heading into the week it looks to be clear skies which should help dry things out a bit.
“We’re hoping for some dry weather,” noted Kuhlers. “It is the first time in a long time we’ve had a forecast for a stretch of dry days and we could use that.”
Damage
Kuhlers noted that any individuals who have sustained damage should contact his office.
“We want to encourage individuals with damage in their homes to contact our office at 507-725-5834 that way they can give us the information and if and when a Presidential Disaster is declared we’ll already have the necessary information to provide to FEMA officials.”
You can contact Daniel McGonigle at
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