I thought I might lose the house yesterday. We got about 18″ of rain in 24 hours and the little trout stream near my house (I can usually wade across it) became a raging torrent 20′ deep and 500′ wide.
The flood has claimed several lives so far (two just a few miles up stream). The torrent took out two train bridges and the main highway bridge in my town. I’ve seen cars floating by and saw a building drop off one bank and disappear.
I thought I might lose my house too. My neighbors block foundation was blown out from under one corner of his house. I woke up at 4:30 am yesterday to my golden retriever going nuts…I looked out the window and my house was surrounded by a raging torrent that was rising fast…no escape route left.
I woke the family and we scrambled to move a few valuables upstairs and on top of tables, etc. We grabed the camping gear (cook stove, lantern, flash lights, food and bottled water).
For a while I thought the water had stopped rising because it was not rising above my front porch floor…then I realized the the porch was floating, Duh! it was rising with the water. There was a deafening roar coming from the basement as water rushed in. I knew to worry when the roar stopped…the basement was now full and the first floor would start filling (first floor was just spared).
I grabbed my rock climbing gear and my neighbor and I set out to secure his boat, which the flood waters had already picked up and smashed into his shed. I tied into my deck and belayed Wade as he waded through the flood waters to tether the boat.
It might have been a fool-hearty effort, but we thought the boat might be our only chance to escape if the house started to give way. With the boat loosened from the trailer and tied to a fence post and a steel well casing, we felt better.
At daybreak the flood waters crested and began to receed. Their has not been a flood like this here in 93 years. I am not in the 100 yr. flood plain, but nature did not read the flood plain map.
The neighborhoods on both sides are still half-submerged. I have pumped out the basement and have an afternoon of mud-shoveling ahead of me. I wonder how my 5 yo Trane furnace and water heater will fare.
Also lost cable modem, network router, dehumidifier, etc.. Get to try to reclaim silt and fuel oil coated off-season clothes and holiday decor (neighbors fuel oil was carried by flood water from his basement to mine and their is a stinky oily coating on everything). Had 2004 and earlier business records down in the basement too–what a mess.
Glad to be alive!
Brian
Edited 9/3/2007 10:33 pm ET by basswood
Edited 9/4/2008 8:48 am ET by basswood
Replies
Few things as scary as water moving in volume.
Hope that clean up will not be too bad--but, from experience, it can be better to be pessimistic until you get close to the end of the clean up effort. In other words, double how long you think things will take to do, halve expectaions of what you can get, and so on.
Flooding that fast, that serious, has a "snowball" effect. Priority goes to muni services first (since flooded fire stations are very bad things to have). That ties up resources. The sources for resources, get flooded, too--which makes it hard to get things.
Toughest part, though, from my experience, is silt. Silt will be everywhere. All of those fine particulates that gave the flood that cafèau lait look begin to settle as soon as the water velocity lowers. The water than flows out or is pumped away. The silt remains. It climbs into outlet boxes, runs through conduit, it finds every "weakness" and exploits it.
Here's wishing you the strength of ten, as it may be needed.
Thanks,The only thing worse than silt is probably this silt/fuel oil mousse we have. Have a fan blowing the fuel oil (diesel) smell out of the basement and a fan blowing fresh air into the first floor.I better go get busy...then later I'll go grab a hot shower at a friends house...something to look forward to.
worse than silt is probably this silt/fuel oil mousse we have
Well, as soon as you have muni offices working (which may hinge on when the employees can get in, rather than the physical building being operable), you probably ought to check on whether the hydrocarbons will need to be remediated.
My guess is that anything with fuel oil mixed in it, will have to be contained, and prevented from "run off" (even though it was run off).
Might be worth a trip to the warehouse club for a giant sack (or six) of kitty litter, too--you'll get some odor control while "binding up" some of the contaminates. But, that's a clean guess--MN environemtal rules may require a licensed remediator and "fuel dry" (even when that's just cat litter).Occupational hazard of my occupation not being around (sorry Bubba)
BTW I will only be online once a day or so (internet cafe) until I replace some electronics...oh, and the wifes car may be toast too.
Looking for the silver lining, leaning into the wind and all that.
BW
The silver lining is - your family is ok. All the rest of it is just stuff!
And - your house is still there!
You have a huge, dirty job in front of you...but it's only stuff!
Wow!
Man, I'm glad yer OK.
Maybe rent a good pressure washer?
Hang in there.
Thanks Duane,A friend is bringing over a pressure washer and pizza this evening...under the circumstances nothing could be better than that.Thanks,BW
Well said. I am soooo grateful that my family is fine!I'm looking for other good to come out of this too.Thanks,Brian
Glad you & your family are all OK & hopefully the cleanup will continue to go smoothly & everyone will be back on their feet ( and foundations ) soonBobbi
Hope every one is okay at your household, this is really hard to imagine.I live by Eau Claire been raining off and on for a few days, 5 inches on ground and still coming down but nothing like you have there. What would a guy do without a computer to post pictures to all his freinds.
All well in my household. thanks.
Glad you are alive. Sorry about the financial/material losses you have suffered. Do you have food and clean water available?
Food and clean water we have...electricity too--a huge blessing for clean-up.It is August, but it is cold and damp and with fans blowing...I even fired up the wood stove...sounds crazy I imagine.
It may be a big mess to clean up but I'm glad to hear you and yours are okay. Material things can be replaced but what could have happened . . . whew.I imagine that roaring water sound will be one you won't soon forget.May your skies clear and good luck on the cleanup!soj
Thanks Carol and Soj,I really gotta go now...more news and pics in a couple of days...the mud awaits.Your sentiments are solace,BW
Boy, you were really in the eye of the storm there. Copter shots of that train bridge made the network news.
Glad you made it through safe, wish you the best with the recovery -- it's gonna be a big effort!
Thanks Dan.It looks like ground zero here...you should see it.I was just saying that train bridge should be replaced in your I-35 thread. 1912-2007...it will be replaced now.If you have a really good sense of balance you might still be able to walk accross. ;o)
So glad you are safe...Those pictures remind me of the flood that wrecked my daughter's house in Ohio...Water rose to the second floor of the house and the clean-up was a mess! Bad thing is it happened to them twice...
You can send some of that water here...Stay dry!
Wow, that was way too close for comfort. Glad to hear you're okay and the house made it through (relatively) unscathed.
Thanks Stuart.Unscathed and people have been great. Red Cross and a HyVee grocer both dropped off bottled water. Also got a donation of some clean up stuff. Friends have dropped off food and offered to cook some meals for us. Three friends have helped with mud shoveling...almost ready for the wash and rinse cycles.My sump pump quit and a neighbor who did not flood brought his over.People change when disaster hits...even neighbors that I don't even like are being really nice (they might think the same, I know). No room for pettiness when you are glad to just be alive.
Here are a couple photos of Rushford (for those people outside the area, the first picture is not an aerial photo - it was taken from a high hill right on the edge of town.
As it happens, I just finished up the design of a new water treatment plant for Rushford a few weeks ago - it was going to be an addition to an existing wellhouse, but that facility got flooded out so there's going to be a lot more work to do now. The wastewater treatment plant was totally under water as well so we may have to start from scratch on that one.
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View Image
Edited 8/23/2007 8:58 am by Stuart
Was just checking here for any updates.
Hope you are getting things cleaned up. Been seeing on the news about all the toxic mud left behind.
Best luck,
Shoe
Rochester Red Cross is planning to send 500 volunteers to Rushford next week. Will be mostly kids and retirees, I suspect, except on the weekend.A guy in our church is organizing a group of more capable folks -- able to do more than man a shovel or mop. Don't know where they're going, exactly -- gotta talk to the guy a bit.
So convenient a thing it is to be a reasonable Creature, since it enables one to find or make a Reason for everything one has a mind to do. --Benjamin Franklin
Dan
I just came back from Basswoods place this eve - he's in pretty good shape but cant say the same for most of his surrounding areas, man it looks bad.
I was listening to a local radio station(maybe out of Winona) and they were still trying to round up enough people to go to Rushford.
A lot of Red Cross people out and about and I've never seen so many dead appliances stacked up in a neighborhood in my life, mountains of them, same for trash. Dumpsters were being filled and hauled away at a pretty fast pace.
Sounds like very few people, if any, have insurance to cover any of the losses and from what I saw there will be a lot of houses that are complete gut jobs if they want to save the house.
Rumor around the neighborhood is that FEMA will only be giving out about $28,000 max and most dont feel that will be enough to fix some of the houses. I think there may be a lot of people walking away from their obligation.
While I was sitting at Basswoods house eating we saw the guys(Canadian Pacific RR) that built a railroad bridge in 6 days fire it up and send the first train across it. Bass said that they had been working around the clock to get it going. Apparently its a temp bridge and the permanate one will be built in the original spot.
There are some little towns of about 4-500 that dont look like they are worth saving, or anything to save. I dont think I have ever saw railroads with so much damage to them, rails that had washouts 1/2 mile long, bridges out .......... I think most of that belonged to DM&E RR. They will be working for a long time to restore their line.
Since the Canadian Pacific got the bridge rebuilt they have been running trains across it nonstop.
Bass sounded like he might have internet back by midweek. He got hot water back by Sat and has some minor electric and foundation work but he's sitting OK for now.
Doug
Did you get pics ???You can't just drop a nugget like a 6-day build of a working railroad bridge, in the middle of a thread like this, and not show pics !!!Come on man, we're gonna go bonkers here ! We gotta have pics !!!;o)
Yeh... That'll work.
Luka, Here is a pic on the third day after the flood (also note that in the second bridge street photo I posted, trucks were already filling in part of the washed out rail bridge approach only a few hours after the bridge washed out):CP was rumored to be loosing one million dollars each day the bridge was down.Gotta run,Basswood
Yeah, they appear to have "SWAT teams" ready to handle this sort of thing. We had a derailment on the DME line near us about 3 weeks back and within 12 hours they had a 6-8 big rigs with equipment (4-5 crawlers and some smaller stuff) and supplies (rails, ties, plates, spikes, etc) pull in and set up shop. Took them less than two days from the time the derailment occurred, even though they had to replace about 500 feet of track and re-set another 500. And this is piddlin' little DME.(I have some pics but never got around to posting.)
So convenient a thing it is to be a reasonable Creature, since it enables one to find or make a Reason for everything one has a mind to do. --Benjamin Franklin
There was a derailment near us with Haz-Mat issues. Of course there was other mud related issues all along Hwy 35 on the river. A couple people assaociated with those efforts said the same as you- the railroad being ready for disaster. I heard it's costing the railroad companies around a million bucks every couple minutes they aren't hauling in lost revenue. Giver or take a few thousand, that's still a buncha change! Neither cold, nor darkness will deter good people from hastening to the dreadful place to quench the flame. They do it not for the sake of reward or fame; but they have a reward in themselves, and they love one another.
-Benjamin Franklin
Did you get pics ???
Luka
I did get some pic's but man I don't like standing around taking pictures of someone else's misery - feel kinda awkward taking a pic while the people are standing there looking at everything they own in a pile of filth, pretty depressing.
I haven't loaded them onto the computer but I will tonight and post what I have, which ain't much. I sorta do a drive by so as not to make people feel like I'm some dirtbag that cant look away from a wreck!
It's pretty bad up there and I wish I could do more but.........
Heres a tip, try googling the Winona Daily News, the front page of Sundays paper has a pic of the area right behind Basswoods house, literally right behind his house! I'll see if I can scan it and get something recognizable.
Doug
Edited 8/27/2007 9:21 pm ET by DougU
Doug,I totally understand. And your empathy for those in such situations is one of the things I and others here, like about you.Pics of the railroad bridge that was built so quickly would be pics of the victory, not the misery.=0)I have plenty of pictures,(and memories), of the misery of our own flood and the terrible damage it did.I could have taken a lot more pictures, but chose only to take pics of those things that either directly affected me, or pretty much affected only things like traffic and power. (Funny, I would be hard pressed to find the pics. Maybe a few, but not many. Not exactly scrapbook material...)
Yeh... That'll work.
Luka
Here is some pics, not very good but the best I could do.
I really didnt capture the mood of the place thats for sure!
Doug
View Image
Basswoods house and yard is located right(cant be seen in the pic) below the trees in the lower middle of the pic.
He mentioned that those houses that you see above the bridge were unseen from his house prior to the flood but afterwards he had a clear view of them, all the trees along the bank have been washed away, along with the peoples back yards!
Edited 8/27/2007 10:17 pm ET by DougU
Doug, Greetings from the land of chaos and...A huge THANK YOU! We got another thunderstorm last night and I still had all those tools on the picnic table under a tarp...didn't want to risk the wind blowing the tarp off in the storm...so in the middle of the night I scurried around collecting tools in my jammies.With it raining, I put the sashes back into the new basement windows and shut that new door we put in, and switched from fans ventilating to running the dehumidifier. That ugly old basement is now tighter than ever...thanks, in large part, to you!I'll keep you posted on the neighbor we helped with the beams and posts. Sure looks discouraging.Glad you made it back home,Brian
Brian
While driving home I saw the DM&E working on their tracks between MinnCity and Stockton so it looks like both of us are wrong regarding them just giving up on it! Course they still have two bridges that I know of that need to be replace!!!
Doug
Shoe,Things are going well, all things considered, thanks.The flood delivered this little guy to my house:
Stuart,I worked on a home in Rushford last fall. We have not been able to get in touch with those folks...I imagine they are OK, but may be in a shelter, etc.Crazy,BW
Basswood,
Very glad to see that you're ok. There was another thread here about the MN flooding, mentioning that you were in the thick of it and I was hoping you'd post to let us know that you were above water.
Best of luck with the cleanup. If there's anything you need that I can help with from here in VA, don't be shy about asking, ok?
Best,
Steve
Steve,Thanks for the nice words. We are still shell shocked around here.Here in the cafe there is an old man using the pay phone...must have lost his phone/cell phone (and who knows what else) in the flood and I overheard his concerned calls checking to see if his friends in my town are OK.The concern in his voice is moving and I find myself getting emotional again. Feelings are both deeper than usual and very close to the surface.
sad to see the damage, and glad you and family are alright - there's a creek that flows through our property - great for wading and whatnot - until it floods - impressive the force of water -
anyway, keeping the lemon/lemonade paradigm in mind - that limestone associated with the railroad bridge is some great material - I'd be trying to get some of it, if they replace the abutments....
Thanks David,The force of that water is astounding...a bunch of those huge blocks of limestone are just gone!I will see if I can get some of that stone.BW
Wow.
There is something devestating about being flooded. Something strange. Not like other disasters.
Your recount and pics brings back last winter, for me.
I was flooded out for two weeks. The only way I could get back in was to walk across the railroad bridge. Glad the same didn't happen to mine, as happened to yours.
I'm glad you and yours are ok.
Do you need anything ?
We went from drought to flood...crazy!I remember your flood. Your mention of "flooded feelings" does have resonance here.Here is another pic of "my train bridge"
Oh man oh man oh man. That pic in particular brings the feelings home.I walked around in a kind of daze for several weeks.My neighbors got severely depressed and stayed that way for months.The best way I could help both of us out was to help them to get to the point where they could start earning a living again. Once they could do that, they started getting better quickly. And I helped myself, mental-flu wise, by helping them.That silt that is all piled up deep in the bottom of your picture... Imagine that covering everything. Their entire property was almost a foot deep in that stuff. Inside the house and out...Kind of like a cross between fine grit, and talcum powder.The worst I had to deal with, was patching up my roof. There was other stuff as well, but that was the biggest damage. Pretty much totalled my trailer. (And then another branch came down a few months ago, and bashed in the rest of the roof. LOL I am in the process of getting another trailer up the hill and set up.)I am glad that you are dealing with it as well as you are. You have my empathy.
Yeh... That'll work.
I just experienced the depressed neighbor syndrome that you mentioned.The owner of a home about 100' from my house had most of the cement block foundation washed out from under the front of his house. He has piles of the foundation rubble mixed in with mud and the soggy belongings that were in the semi-finished basement.Doug U and I went over yesterday and helped him put a couple of temporary beams and posts in to support the front of the house...but by yesterday afternoon he was turning away help and said, "Mother Nature has beaten me...F-#% It!"I think the banks are going to be owning a bunch of mud-filled homes.This weekend my home was inspected and yellow-tagged "Uninhabitable--enter at your own risk," which is in the middle of the scale (red and orange ratings are worse and green and blue are better). We have power and now hot water so life is good.I have to get the basement electrical panel and about 20' of basement block wall replaced to be officially "habitable," but after one day pumping water out, three days of hauling soggy muddy stuff out and shoveling mud out of the basement, a day of pressure washing and bleaching, and a day and a half of replacing the basement door and windows, etc.--we are a week ahead of many who are just now getting back in as the water receeds.That fine grit in the silty mud that you mentioned has caused grief here too, it got into my boots and during the mucking out phase, slowly wore abrasions on my heels and ankles, etc. Just a minor annoyance compared to the issues many face here.I hope all goes well with your new place..."up the hill" sounds like a good idea. ;o)Thanks for the moral support,BW
Thanks for updating; I've been hoping things have been progressing well for you. Looks your diligence will get things back together. Continuing to wish you, and your community, good luck,soj
Soj,Thanks for the well-wishing, etc.I saw your post yesterday, but still did not have internet at home and I ran short on time to respond during my visit to the internet cafe.Got the net back up this afternoon (replaced the old mud filled cable modem and net router/wireless, and fished some new Cat-5 wire).It is ironic that much of the flood recovery contact information we were provided with is web-based...and we have been without the internet for about 10 days. I just stopped in here to say hello, now I have some homework to do on the web while I enjoy a glass of wine.Tschüss,Basswood
Much better to be surfing the net surfing the floodwaters -- Enjoy that well-earned glass of wine!soj
My heart hurts for you and yours...As I said, my daughter went through this twice in Ohio. I still have mental pics of the mud and muck...When Doug mentioned the piles of appliances, he is so right...Stay safe...Believe it or not, it does get better...But, it takes a real strong constitution and back breaking work, as you know...I hate to mention this, but how many had good flood insurance? Daughter had it for the first flood, but, only exterior insurance for the second one...Too damned expensive...
Carole,Thank you for the encouragement. We are making steady progress.A friend took me out to lunch today. So many people are displaced that the resturants that are still open are doing brisk business.This brings up an interesting situation, businesses that were not hit by the floods--really have a leg up on those that are still out of comission. Someone always benefits from the misfortune of others."Good flood insurance" seems to be an oxymoron. A lawyer I talked to yesterday told me that most flood insurance policies would not have covered my losses, because flood water had to flow in above the ground floor. All the damage to my home occured below the first floor. Others here could have benefited from such a policy and I nearly fit the insurance definition of flooded too, but the water stopped rising just in time.
Glad there wasn't more damage...Daughter's home was flooded up to 6 feet on the first floor...I know what you mean about flood insurance...People will get through this, but, it's heartbreaking at first...Stay safe and dry!! Isn't it amazing how one's fellow human beings help out when needed?
Carole,The clean up still continues, but I have come up with some good methods that make life better. I had a bathtub stored out in the shop and I set it up with a pressure washer and a drying rack in the street and driveway to keep more mud and water away from the house.The tub has been very handy for cleaning large items or a whole mess of small stuff. I even took the time to clean up a tub full of antique glass bottles that the flood brought us.I also pressed the air hockey table into service, the air blowing out of all those little holes in the table is perfect for dying out important papers and Christmas ornaments, etc.Tired, but indefatigable!BW
Edited 9/3/2007 10:39 pm ET by basswood
How ingenious! I remember going over to my daughter's flooded house, saying we have to throw out all of the food, and her crying...I also remember cautioning my grandson(10)about running through the water...He did get a nasty parasite infection...Those bottles look great...I have old bottles scattered around our backyard...Want to sell any? <G>Looks like you are coping and that is the best part...Many do not recover from such a flood...
I think the air hockey table and bathtub ideas might be helpful to other flooded people out there...I'll try to get the word out.A few of the bottles are duplicates and I would sell them if you are interested. Most of the bottles pre-date screw tops and bottle caps...they were corked and two of them still had corks.Many of the bottles are from the prohibition period with gov't warnings on the glass and are 4/5's quart size...interesting.I'm off now to get a replacement for a flood totaled car.
Be careful -- someone might try to sell you one of those Katrina cars. ;)
So convenient a thing it is to be a reasonable Creature, since it enables one to find or make a Reason for everything one has a mind to do. --Benjamin Franklin
Good point about the other flood cars out there. We are getting a CarFax report on the car we are thinking about buying...I hope that tells enough of the story.Got my work van back this afternoon they pulled, cleaned and replaced the carpet over new pad, replaced muddy wheel bearings and brake shoes, and a few other things. Looks better than when I bought it.On the glass bottles, they appear to be from The Oaks...have you heard of that place?
Brian
Good to hear you got your van up and running. What was up with the motor? Or was it just some dummy that left the key in the ignition while the doors were open thus causing the battery to die! ;)
Let me know the deal on biker Jeff(I thought that was his name, been calling him biker dude and forgot his givin name) Is he going to need some cleaning out or what?
You better hurry up and get the little woman a car, seams like it could be a long walk from your house to the mall, drive south to Iowa and buy one, we dont soak ours in river water!
Doug
Doug,I will be helping "Biker Dude" (his name is Dick) this Saturday. He is definately a loner and his few friends seem to be worn out people of little use in the clean up.I suppose if my wife left me and I did not have kids I would be a hermit too, but a more high energy hermit.One perk this weekend is that a crew of 10 (mostly college girls) will be here doing landscape work in my yard and repainting the basement walls, etc. (part of a huge volunteer weekend cleanup), while I work across the street at Dick's.Volunteer cleanup crews are still not allowed in Dick's Red tagged house.My van did have a few flood related issues (I will run it back into the shop today to have a head light that filled with flood water replaced). It is good that some dummy left the dome light on, because the water did get higher than I thought, the carpet pad was wet even though the carpet was mostly dry...I think it seeped in from below.It looks like the water crested just 3" below my first floor on the outside of the house (though the surge that high must have been short lived as the basement high water line is a foot lower than outside.Anywhoo, come on up, if you want to help this weekend--warning the youngest kid has a birthday this weekend. You might find my "Flooded by Rollingstone Creek" theory interesting.Thanks again for the help,Brian
Brian
I had some unexpected family thing come up so I didn't see your post until tonight (sat)
I feel bad that I didn't know about the all girl(college aged at that) painting party, hell with biker Dick, his place will be there next week, your basement walls needed paint on them this weekend! I don't think all that mess up in the living room and kitchen of Dicks place came about due to the flood. ;)
Wise woman that wife of yours shipping you out so the college girls could gets something done.
Well my surprise to both the girls will be timely then knowing that the younger gal also had a b-day. That should leave here sometime this week.
Doug
Edited 9/8/2007 10:49 pm ET by DougU
Doug and ALL,Here is an update:It looks like the damage to DM&E railroad might have been more than they could take...Canadian Pacific has announced that they will buy them out, improve and expand the line. Not exactly good news...will mean more trains, but perhaps on quieter, seamless rails.They have been running the pile driver right outside my house for about 3 weeks now--that is getting old. I have a few pics here of a wider view of things...and will take some more of what I am up to this week.I am in the process of digging in a new basement floor drain line from the outside stair landing to the sump pit. I am also setting vertical 4" steel I-beams along the inside of the unstable foundation wall, hoping to stabilize rather than replace the wall. The view from the bluffs photo was a couple of days ago from an opening in the woods, about a third of the way up the bluff south of my house. The large roof in the left of the pic is my place, the bluffs in the background of the photo are in Wisconsin. The band of pale green vegetation below the WI bluffs are mostly Silver Maples on islands in the Mississippi River. In the middle of the photo, you can see one of the red tagged houses on the edge of the bank.
Here is another update.The train bridge that is about 150' or so from my house has been replaced with a new bridge. Here are some before, during and after the flood photos of the bridge (some pics previously posted): BTW it took dozens of workers six weeks of 14 hour days, seven days a week to rebuild this bridge.
Last week I took the time to put a new back on a primative antique cabinet of mine that was flooded. The unfinished wood on the cabinet back swelled tremendously, warped and split...the wood on the other 5 sides of the cabinet survived.This is a depression era item fashioned from fruit crates. The dried mud flaked off and looked like chocolate shavings. The new back is just masonite--a basic cheap material I had on hand--not unlike the fruit crates the original was made from. I rationalize.Satisfaction comes from small things sometimes. It felt good to get that cabinet back in working order.
You know, I almost think I would have left the back of that cabinet the way it was. Character, and the fact that as an antique it is worth less with the masonite...Is that new bridge going to stand up to it if you have another flood like the last one ?~~~Those "chocolate shavings" are giving me fits.I have been bad sick for two of the last three weeks, because I started cleaning the inside of the 5er trailer. Went right over my head why I got sick, the first time.Then the second time I went in there and did some cleaning, I got sick again. That time, I figured it out.The problem is all the contaminants that got mixed with the river water and silt, then deposited all over the inside of the trailer.The contaminants consist of whatever was in the black tank. That stuff naturally floated up and out and mixed with the flood water. The trailer was almost completely full of water.The way I look at it... If it doesn't kill me before I am finished... I win !!=0)Now that I know what is going on, I'll use some water to keep the dust down. That's about the only thing I can do. It takes a really good resperator to clamp down tight enough over my beard, to make a difference. Then, it is TOO tight and uncomfortable to wear for very long. Besides, if it's dust, it gets everywhere, anyway. Including in the mucous membranes in my eyes.I didn't want to use water like that, because the battle here, is keeping water out. But it looks like I have to compromise. I'll do what I have to, then when the place is finally watertight, I'll use a dehumidifier, and some electric heat to dry it out again.~~~Getting real close to the anniversary of our flood.Not making for real good memories.But it's far enough away that it is not too difficult to stay positive, and keep working. Just looking at the progress so far, shows that the goal of finishing is attainable.=0)Gotta get back to work...
Yeh... That'll work.
That cabinet was distorted by the warped wood and I didn't want to mess with it. I know you have a case for leaving it alone, but the doors were jambed shut, etc. I just wanted it to work properly again. Glad to have it back in service.On the train bridge, only time will tell. Odds are, we won't see another flood like that for 500 years...I hope not in my lifetime.I had to bleach my basement again this week to keep the mold at bay...have not finished my foundation work or the floor drain project, etc. It was good painting weather this past weekend so I saved the basement for the cooler weather.I am amazed by how long some of this stuff takes.I gotta get back to work too (helping a neighbor put a new kitchen in).
Brian
I assume that's the bridge at the end of your street?
Hows things going around the rest of the town? The part I'm thinking of is some of those houses up the highway from your place(going towards Wisc) on the right hand side of the road.
Doug
I saw in the paper today that they'd demoed the house that blew up.
If your view never changes you're following the wrong leader
Hi Doug,I just got home from helping out a neighbor (their basement flooded...but only a foot or so of water). The work I'm doing for them is a kitchen remodel they were in the middle of when the flood hit. It is not really flood help I'm providing, but I do wonder if I would be helping them if the flood had not happened.We are pulling together as a community and helping each other out in stuff beyond the flood.You guessed correctly on the train bridge, you can just get a glimpse of my red house through the trees in the "new bridge" pic.The USDA is heading up a rebuilding of the bank that washed away leaving those houses on the edge of a cliff...so some red tagged homes may get to be saved.The flood ravaged homes on the other side of hwy 61 are mostly being rebuilt (I've bid finish work in 3 of those homes), some are just getting torn down though. Dozens of homes are just getting gutted and sold as shells to the highest bidder.Biker dude is just going to sell out...as is (nothing ever happened there). Some people rise to the challenge...others just move on.Thanks for asking about things,Brian
Biker dude is just going to sell out...as is (nothing ever happened there). Some people rise to the challenge...others just move on.
Thats to bad but maybe a cute girl will move in.
Make sure the misses doesnt see this!
Doug
<G>Hey, even the Post Office here is for sale now.The owners don't want to fix it (they lease it to Uncle Sam)...leased through 2011...they want 48K for it.
LOVE the air hockey table idea!
What a concept!
Forrest - knew hockey was good for something
Glad you like the idea...I hope it comes in handy for someone else out there...that sounds like I am hoping for another disaster, but far from it.Personally, I like all forms of hockey.I once fell in love with a petite little cute girl who played hockey when all the other girls were figure skating...she had a bunch of hockey playing brothers and thought nothing of taking you into the boards...man what a hip check she dished out. I might sound like a masochist, but it is a fond memory. <g>
Yeah, those class bottles were likely tossed into a trash heap somewhere that washed out.
So convenient a thing it is to be a reasonable Creature, since it enables one to find or make a Reason for everything one has a mind to do. --Benjamin Franklin
Brian
Any action over at the bikers house?
That's got me all bummed, hate to see the guy give up so easily. Hell he might still be married to that woman that he talks so highly of if he'd only put forth more effort!
You find out any thing on the van?
You don't have to mention this to the newly anointed 15 year old but I have a surprise for her. Maybe you should just wait for it to arrive in the mail, hate to have her start celebrating prematurely, she being so modest about b'days and all!
Doug
Doug,Biker Rick has reconsidered giving up, FEMA will give him a grant rather than a loan that will cover the foundation work...that really improved his attitude. He has made little progress, but I will see if a few of us can get in there this weekend to add some momentum.The van is repairable, I'm told. If they fix it, I hope it stays fixed.The birthday was amusing. Cait has a really good group of friends--nice teenagers--all around. I can keep a secret.Cheers,Brian
He has made little progress, but I will see if a few of us can get in there this weekend to add some momentum.
Well if you cant get in there this weekend and the work still needs done next weekend let me know. I can bring my boy Jose up and we could giver-hell.
You'd like my Jose!
Doug
Doug,If you want to come back up that would be great. I think we should try to help Mr. Biker as long as he is willing to work with us. If he just has no ambition we could go help some others I know need it.I know an older retired couple who could use the help and I know a fellow carpenter (a framer) with a gutted house, most possessions lost--even all his tools. He lives in "Sunny Acres" which is now known as "Muddy Acres."Thanks,BrianP.S. Did you see my fabulous filing system when you were here?
Maybe -you- can get us some pics of the 6 day railroad bridge ?;o)As for the neighbor...I know what kind of position you are in. Stretched to the max. It's kind of hard in that situation to think about anything other than what is right in front of your face.Stop for a second and consider the neighbor. If the guy was a good neighbor... As in, if he at least wasn't a bad neighbor, LOL... You might want to consider insisting helping him. Then accepting the help from DougU again, and a couple others that have offered, and maybe getting the neighbor far enough along that he doesn't feel helpless anymore.**EDIT: I just took the time to read the rest of the thread, before posting this, and it looks like you are ALREADY way ahead of me. LOL God good good !!**My neighbors gave up. They really did.I spent a week just going over there and telling them what they still had. Helping to fix or clean stuff. And getting them focused on the fact that their income, their employment was not washed away. Just the place to lay their head and take a bath. Once they caught sight of what could be done, -and- saw that they could actually go on making a living even though they were flooded out... They recovered.Part of the fixing I did was to get their computer and electronics back up and running. With that, they could send out pics, and get paid. Once they had an income again, they could see affording to get the rest of the way out of the mire.They have since built an office on higher ground. So if it ever floods like that again, the entire business will survive withut a hitch. (And they can sleep in there if they have to.They plan to have the house raised as soon as they can afford it. That will help as well.These people are strong people, and very good friends to me. I don't have any doubt they would have survived without my help. But I like to think that my unique perspective and understanding of depression, and the ways in which I tried to help, did make a difference.=0)~~~The entire flood 'mental flu' thing...During the actual flood, it is all adrenaline. All action. All danger. All risk, to help save others... etc.Then there is a time of dullness. While the waters are still up, but whatever people will survive, have done so, and have gotten out of dangerous situations.Then it seems like the entire local region goes into catatonia, just watching to see whether more damage is going to be done. Waiting for the waters to go down so they can see the real extent of the damage.In this wait stage, people begin to get depressed. The longer the wait, the more overwhelmed they will be by what they face once the wait is over.Most people, once they can get back to their home, and can get their hands on the problem, so to speak, recover. They get hard at work cleaning up, fixing and rebuilding.Some people need a kickstart from others. A bit of help, and then they are on their way. Unfortunately, there are some for whom there is no recovery. they will move on, abandon what they had, etc.I am glad to see that you are firmly in the first category. As soon as you were able to get your hands on the work, you started plowing your way through with determination.Good for you ! Good onya !!=0)And I am glad to see that your local govenment provides you the leniency from 'code' enforcement, et al... To allow you to live there while you are repairing.~~~As for myself and my new place up the hill...I finally got the 5er all the way up the hill to where I want it to stay for the winter.I have actually been working pretty good for a while now, at this project. I was at Art's house yesterday. (Junkhound.) I was dropping off an 84 S-15 Jimmy that I had traded to him for another vehicle, and picking up materials that had been torn out form an old deck. I'll be recycling the materials the best I can into this project. They won't go a long way, but having them is better than having nothing at all. And there are some surprisingly good things in that pile. =0)As I told Art while I was there... I have done more talking than doing, over the years. (Because of the depression, and other bi-polar problems.)But once I saw the real possibilities in this project, I started working hard, and have worked non-stop. Now I am still talking, yeah. But I am doing more doing, than talking. LOLThis trailer will more than triple my living space. It will finally give me not only a real shower and tub, it will also finally delineate the different spaces of home. Bath, bedroom, kitchen, and office/living room.It also has huge windows that let an awful lot of light in. That will help in the S.A.D. days of winter.I am working at getting it cribbed up first. Then covered with some kind of roof structure separate from the trailer. Once those are done, I will set about cleaning all the mold, silt, and toxic waste from the inside. Then I'll start sealing up whatever is acceptable as-is, with paint, shellac, whatever... And start rebuilding whatever needs it.I'll have to do some plumbing and electrical work as well. Also some exterior work, such as setting up a 250 gallon water storage tank, and rigging a small ute trailer with 55 gallon barrels so I can bring water from town to fill my tank.I have a LOT of work ahead of me. But I am excited. I can clearly see the possibilities. And I have consistantly worked harder now, and for longer.... Than I have been able to in years. And I will continue to do so.The problem I have is not having the needed financing to get the materials I will need to get this project to the point where I can move in within 4 or 5 weeks. It is already getting cold here. Winter will be on us soon. Art has helped with materials before when I need to get a project done, and once again, he came through in a pinch. While this is not much in the scheme of things, compared to what I really need... It is a great deal to me in that a friend cared enough to take time out of his own schedule to find the materials, and to help me to get them home. Plus... it IS something, at least. He has provided me with at least 4 different things that were and are sorely needed for the stage of work that I am in -right now-. Thus, he has helped keep me from stalling out, and becoming overwhelmed for lack of resources.My flood was last winter. I am still working to recover from it.You may still be working at a few things come this time next year. Don't get overwhelmed. There IS a light at the end of the tunnel.=0)
Yeh... That'll work.
Luka,
Check out this site for lots of pics:
http://www.kttc.com/Weather/flooding.php
I grew up in that area and it looks like a huge mess. I still have family back there, lots of wet basements but everyone is OK.
Larry
Larry
Good link! Those pictures sure tell the story. I think I saw most or at least a lot of that stuff.
Doug
That's a lot of pics !I will have to check it out when my internet connection is being more steady.Thank you.
Yeh... That'll work.
As for the neighbor...
Yea that's a story in and of itself!
He(neighbor) had a lot of his foundation collapse as Basswood said but I didn't feel that he was in all that bad of shape. Of course I wasn't experiencing the week long BS that he was so its easy for me to say this.
I should point out that his house was staying nice and strait in spite of loosing about 25 to 35% of his foundation. Didnt see anymore then maybe 1/2" of sag over about the 25' of missing foundation so if one could get a mason in there I doubt it would take more then a day or two to lay the block back up. Hell if it were my house I'd be laying the block myself - after all, what's the big deal in laying some block!
We shored up his house to make it safe to get the place cleaned up but I think he lost his will to do it. What he needs is 5 guys that would go in there and kick azz and just clean the damn basement out. Then I think he could actually see some light at the end of the tunnel and not the overwhelming feeling that he's obviously experiencing.
His house didn't get any water up in the main floor which is a huge plus but he needs some help, both mentally and physically, hope he gets it.
Nice enough biker dude but where the hell are all his other biker friend when he really needs them! Maybe I should buy a keg and some refer and have a party, that'd get them all there to help out. Maybe some biker chicks and then hell, I'd probably show up and do some work myself!
Doug
Edited 8/27/2007 10:31 pm ET by DougU
Sounds to me like if someone would just shore the place up with a bunch of cribbing, that would at least give the guy more time to get the foundation back under there.
Yeh... That'll work.
Few more Pics for anyone interested.
http://sevenels.net/flood/07flood.html
That fine grit in the silty mud that you mentioned has caused grief here too, it got into my boots and during the mucking out phase, slowly wore abrasions on my heels and ankles, etc. Just a minor annoyance compared to the issues many face here.
Yeah, but "trench foot" can smack of insult piled on injury--it can suck the life out of a person.
Having folk around to keep a person "bouyed up" is hard to measure. Even people coming into help can get overwhelmed by the span and reach of this sort of thing. (That's how I learned, the hard way.)Occupational hazard of my occupation not being around (sorry Bubba)
Glad everybody's safe.
Having some experience with flood aftermath, expect your "100 year flood" elevations to be redrawn.
It's all about the impervious cover added in the last 93 years.
Thanks Tom,I hope I am now even farther out of the flood plain...the new channel this flood cut is a huge canyon compared to the old channel. The new channel has a dramatically larger cross section.In this mostly rural area the "impervious cover" is likely not to blame for this calamity, but I know what you mean.One thing for sure, this flood has changed many things including topography and the maps will need to be redrawn.Evenin'BW
Brian
I was up in southeast MN last weekend and headed out as soon as the sky opened up.
Glad to hear that you and the family are OK, thats the main thing. I grew up in a small town that flooded every damn year, I hate floods and when I look for a house thats the first thing I notice, where is the water and how can it get to my house!
Our furnace was in the basement and got submerger numerous times but drying it out always seamed to do the trick, course that was old time tech and I dont know how the newer furnaces would fare with the wiring/electronic stuff.
I have three day weekends, if you need any help I can come up and give you a hand, just say the word.
Doug
Doug,if you don't have plans for this weekend (or next weekend even) I could use a hand. My cell is (507) 459-4465. I have been still working my day job too (at least half -days) to keep my business rollin' and for my mental health...there is only so much mud shoveling I can take in one day.I finished this custom laminate top yesterday. Feels good to be doing carpentry after a couple of days of non-stop slogging through mud.
My sister lives not far away from the flooding, and her daughter sent me some photos today of the damage in Rushford (they're on my office computer, I'll try to post a few of them tomorrow.) I just finished up a water treatment plant design for Rushford, but it looks like we're going to have to go back to square one on that job....their wastewater treatment plant is totally underwater as well; I'll probably be down there in a week or two to see if anything can be salvaged. I'll probably put my rubber suit on for that project. :-( echh.
I'll give you a call sometime tomarrow.
Doug
Brian-
Glad you are "managing" to say the least. I'm down the river a tick- south of LaCrosse in Coon Valley, if you remember. I'm glad I saw your thread. I wondered about you when hearing and reading of the Winona news and of course the devastation south of you as well.
Seems we have, so far, faired a tad better than you folks. Nobody hurt at least. The lower part of Chaseburg was pretty wet, with some houses having water lines two feet up the walls on the main level. A fella I know, a driver for LaCrosse UBC, had his entire main floor covered with mud and silt. The local bank had water up to the teller counter. Today we got reports that both bridges over the Coon Creek are buckled and impassable. Kinda makes the little town somewhat of an island!
Good luck to you. I'm sure you, as we all do, know many others that are faced with similar fates. Grin and bear it, man. Our village president actually had sewage backing up into his basement. Poor guy was up all night with the villages utility guy trying desperately to keep the lift stations going to prevent the very thing that happened to him.
As a volunteer firefighter and EMT, I witnessed my share of tragedy, both first and second hand. It's very hard to watch these things happen and, even with hundreds of hours of training, be totally helpless about many things. Our entire county (Vernon) was out all night and most of Sunday dealing with everything. As bad as I thought I saw, I knew other people were dealing with much worse.
Sorry for the rant. I'm not far from you. With so much still going on I know I can't leave for a while, but I too would be very willing to help in the near future. If anything, just to visit. Again, good luck and be careful with the clean up. Remember about the risks of mold. That scares me about all of these basements flooded.
Take Care!
ArynNeither cold, nor darkness will deter good people from hastening to the dreadful place to quench the flame. They do it not for the sake of reward or fame; but they have a reward in themselves, and they love one another.
-Benjamin Franklin
Aryn,Glad to hear things are relatively OK down there...good to hear from you.When things calm down in your neck of the woods--if you have a chance to get up here--it would be great to have you visit. If you want to help out that would be nice too...I'm in pretty good shape (plenty to do here--nothing too urgent ), but I have neighbors we could help as well, if you have the time.My basement is almost dry now and has been bleached too. It actually smells less musty now than before the flood. One trouble spot is the old walk-in beer cooler that was insulated with layers of cork covered with T&G wood and galvanized steel. The wood layer was already rotting and the infusion of flood water forced behind the tin, but in an oxygen poor environment...was generating some anerobic funk.BW
Good on you for being OK. I hope to take advantage of your invite very soon. May be a bit yet, but if there's some helpin to do, i'm up for it. Good luck with your projects, and for the upcoming weeks.
I'll be in touch. Looking forward to spending a day up-river!
ArynNeither cold, nor darkness will deter good people from hastening to the dreadful place to quench the flame. They do it not for the sake of reward or fame; but they have a reward in themselves, and they love one another.
-Benjamin Franklin
Glad to see your post. Thought of you as soon as I heard the news. Knew you were down in that area.
When I got on breaktime, I noticed that someone else had started the Ark thread, that contained an unread post to you.
Glad to here you and your family are fine. Some mess to clean up.
All my best,
Shoe
Thanks,I gotta run...meeting the electrician in my basement about a new sub-panel etc.I'll check in again here in a day or two.Brian
Basswood,
Glad to see you and yours are alive.
I thought of you and the pic you posted of of the flood that wiped that town out as soon as I heard the news of the deluge in your area.
Sorry for the losses, but life wasn't lost so all is recoverable.
Been thru two wash outs in my life, no fun at all.
"Poor is not the person who has too little, but the person who craves more."...Seneca
Dovetail,We are doing well.Thanks for thinking of me,Basswood
Hey Bass, glad you're all alright, but wow what a mess.
I'd like to come over & help ya out with whatever needs doing - please let me know.
Mike
Thanks Mike,I got your email and left you a message.We will be putting things back together for a while...yesterday my work van quit working...likely flood related. Will get it towed in to the shop this afternoon.I have an order of fluted casing to run through the router table in the shop and two bookcases and 3 cabinets to build in the shop...and plenty of stuff to do around the homestead so the lack of transportation is not a huge problem in the short term.Keep Keepin' on,Brian
you said you wasn't in the flood zone. i'm sorry to tell you you willbe now. i live in 100 yr flood zone and you can't do anything to improve the value of your prop with fema going off on ya and possible even sueing ya such as they have me twice, 5 1/2 yrs later still tied up in court.
Mike,The event we had here is being considered a 500 year flood. It also appears that if an event of similar magnitude occurred again next year, the stream channel would be far better at accommodating the water volume. This flood created a great chasm (with 2-3 x's the cross-sectional area), where once a small trout stream flowed.I have involved myself with the flood plain management process in Winona county and met with the planning and zoning flood plain official for the county last week. Tonight I am attending the city council meeting here to explain how and why the flood water entered our town.We were not flooded by Garvin Brook, as the media has reported, but rather a tributary stream known as Rollingstone Creek. It turns out that an undersized train bridge over Rollingstone Creek (with too little through put) caused a large volume of Rollingstone Creek water to back up and be diverted, the water took a left turn and followed the railbed into town (the railway acted as a dike holding water in instead of out).I gave tours to county planning official and a city council member showing them the evidence for my theory and they are convinced that I have a very strong case and they agree with my recommendations to prevent a repeat of this senario. I was as surprised as they were that the flood in my part of town was the accidental result of a rogue spillway that nobody identified ahead of time.I have been able to prove that the water was higher on the Rollingstone Creek side of the tracks than on the Garvin Brook side. I also pointed out that Rollingstone Creek water pushed the tracks off the railbed towards Garvin Brook (rather than Garvin Brook pushing water and tracks towards us), etc.My findings will only help my neigborhood, other neighborhoods and communities in this flood were flooded by Garvin Brook and are beyond the scope of my investigations. More information will be posted here later, about how my ideas are implemented, altered or ignored--as the case may be.Sorry to hear about your case with FEMA. I hope my involvement with the planning process is fruitful enough that my property will be considered even less flood-prone in the future. I will do everything in my power to keep my property out of the 100-year flood plain and perhaps out of the 500-year flood plain (a few changes should make this possible).I respectfully and proactively disagree with your take on my situation,BW
Edited 9/4/2007 7:54 pm ET by basswood