County still waiting for federal disaster declaration

By Heather Gray
for Spring Grove Herald

Spring Grove Herald/STPNS

July 11, 2008

SPRING GROVE, Minnesota (STPNS) -- "FEMA's preliminary damage assessment for the county and township infrastructure is $7,053,000," emergency manager Kurt Kuhlers told the Houston County Board at its regular meeting on June 17.

County and state officials estimate another $15 million in crop and land damage. FEMA does not have assistance for those types of damages.

Kuhlers felt that the county should meet the criteria for being declared a federal disaster area for public assistance, which will help with the repairs of bridges, roads, etc., but he didn't think the county would meet the threshold for individual assistance to homeowners, as there was not enough damage this time.

Homeland Security Region 5 officials were looking at grouping the Mower, Freeborn, Fillmore and Houston counties together in the FEMA declaration to the president.

The county should know this week if it will receive a presidential declaration and FEMA funds.

Cleanup going well

STS (Sentence To Serve) work crews from Mower County have been helping with cleanup in various parts of the county.

In addition, Workforce crews have been mobilized sporadically since the August 2007 flooding and have been of great help, Kuhlers explained.

That program is funded with federal monies so the crews are able to work on private property as well as public projects. STS crews can't.

The crew had been able to help at Camp Winnebago and Dunromin' Campground. "They can also go back and forth between 2007 and 2008 flood damage projects, which is a great help," Kuhlers pointed out.

Flood assistance available

Root River Soil and Water Conservation District manager Ralph Tuck informed the board that the county will again be eligible for Emergency Watershed Program (EWP) funding to assist landowners affected by the 2008 flooding.

Last year the program assisted landowners in the Hokah area. This time it will assist those who live in the Crooked Creek Valley, Winnebago Valley and Jefferson ridge areas.

The program pays 75 percent of the repairs, and in 2007 the state picked up the 25 percent with some of the special legislation funds. Tuck was unsure if the state would again pickup the remaining 25 percent or if the property owner would need to pay the difference.

Property owners wanting more information should contact Tuck at (507) 724-5261, ext. 3.

CodeRED saved lives

Kuhlers informed the board that the new CodeRED program, a reverse 911 or emergency notification program, saved many lives in the recent flooding, as the dispatchers were able to call those residents living in areas affected by the water and mudslides.

"I have had 500 people register since last weekend (of flooding). It worked great and was money well spent," he exclaimed.

FEMA bids let from 2007

Highway maintenance supervisor Tom Molling received board approval to award a series of FEMA related contracts for work to be completed from the 2007 flood.

Four bidders submitted proposals on the projects, the following bids were accepted:

* $33,500 to Kimball Paving and Excavating for repairs to County Road 7;

* $44,750 to Kimball for repairs to County Road 18;

* $6,750 to Minnowa Construction for repairs to County Road 20;

* $47,500 to Kimball for repairs to County Road 22;

* $3,900 to Minnowa Construction for repairs to County Road 25;

* $3,450 to Minnowa for repairs to County Road 26;

* $23,500 to Kimball for repairs to County Road 26 W;

* $49,650 to Kimball for a portion of repairs on County Road 21 and an additional $15,550 for the bridge on County Road 21.

The third part of the bid for an additional $34,725 is to redirect water with a new 6-foot culvert under County Road 21.

The board approved with a condition that the work would not start without final approval from the adjacent landowners, who were not aware of the hydrologist's recommendation to put a larger pipe in the project (from 5 to 6 feet).

Molling explained, "Property owners downstream are worried. In a flooding situation, it will be the same amount of water, it will just be more controlled if it goes through the pipe instead of over the road like it does now. It is a safety issue for the traveling public in my opinion."

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