High waters from the Sheyenne River flood over a road northeast of Kindred, North Dakota on April 1, 2009. Photo by Spc. Chris Erickson

North Dakota National Guard Soldiers responded to a request to help combat
overland flooding April 1 that threatened a handful of rural homes about four miles northeast of the town of Kindred.

Two Quick Reaction Force teams of approximately 20 Soldiers each, quickly responded to the emergency call with three bobcats, a bucket loader and a bulldozer. They arrived within an hour of receiving the assistance call, bringing sandbags loaded on a Palletized Load System truck.

The QRF teams responded from their staging locations in Fargo at Discovery Middle School, Titan Machinery and the El Zagel shrine.

“This is a perfect example of why the QRF exists,” said Command Sgt. Maj. Harley Schwind, senior enlisted Soldier for Joint Task Force-East in Fargo. “They quickly and effectively sprung into action, helping protect the homes of fellow North Dakotans threatened by rising flood waters from the Sheyenne River.”

One of the threatened homes belonged to Mike Schmidt who said that “The river overflowed its banks to the southwest of his home and flowed cross-country headed right at towards him.”

The Citizen-Soldiers of the QRF worked side-by-side with dozens of neighbors who also turned out to help Schmidt and other area residents protect their homes with sandbags.

“The response was unbelievable,” Schmidt said. “It’s a huge relief and the Guard’s help was more than welcome.”

DVIDSStory by Spc. Chris Erickson

The latest information from NorthCom:

PETERSON AIR FORCE BASE, Colo. – U.S. Northern Command continues to coordinate additional and ongoing Department of Defense’s support to Federal Emergency Management Agency, state and local authorities in North Dakota and Minnesota supporting disaster operations in response to flooding in North Dakota.

New – Minnesota

• Mobilized a Defense Coordinating Officer and Defense Coordinating Element to FEMA Region V Regional Response Coordination Center in Bismarck, N.D., in response to the flooding. The DCO acts as the liaison between FEMA and USNORTHCOM, relaying capabilities available to FEMA and coordinating movement of active-duty personnel and equipment to assist should the need arise. The DCE acts as administrative support to the DCO.

Ongoing – North Dakota

• Deploying five CH-47 Chinook helicopters to Grand Forks Air Force Base, N.D., for a variety of missions in support of FEMA. Potential missions include search and rescue, supply transportation, and movement of evacuees or other response personnel.
• Deploying two UH-60 Blackhawk helicopters to Grand Forks Air Force Base, N.D., for a variety of missions in support of FEMA. Potential missions include search and rescue, supply transportation, and movement of evacuees or other response personnel.
• Deploying three Search and Rescue planners from U.S. Northern Command’s headquarters in Colorado Springs, Colo., to assist in SAR planning at the Joint Personnel Recovery Center at Tyndall Air Force Base, Fla. These three planners from Standing Joint Force Headquarters North division of USNORTHCOM will assist in the efforts being conducted at the JRPC, which focuses specifically on large-scale search and rescue operations in the event of a hurricane or natural disaster. When a disaster occurs, the JPRC activates and coordinates the SAR actions of all rescue aircraft in the disaster area to improve the efficiency of rescue operations and reduce the potential for mishaps.
• Providing two search and rescue planners from Air Forces Northern at Tyndall Air Force Base, Fla. to the Joint Personnel Recovery Center.
• U.S. Northern Command, in coordination with Air Forces Northern, is sending one aviation planner to the North Dakota Emergency Operations Center to prepare for potential SAR missions in the affected areas.
• FEMA requested, and USNORTHCOM is supporting, Grand Forks Air Force Base, N.D., as a National Logistics Staging Area. The NLSA will consist of five to 10 acres of space, including 1,000 square feet of office space, necessary to support forward distribution of supplies and equipment to affected areas in North Dakota. The airfield at the base is also being used to forward stage Active Duty helicopters indicated in the new portion of the release.
• Mobilized a Defense Coordinating Officer and Defense Coordinating Element to FEMA Region VIII Regional Response Coordination Center (RRCC) in Bismarck, N.D., in response to the flooding. The DCO acts as the liaison between FEMA and USNORTHCOM, relaying capabilities available to FEMA and coordinating movement of active-duty personnel and equipment to assist should the need arise. The DCE acts as administrative support to the DCO.

U.S. Northern Command, established in the wake of the terrorist attacks of 9/11, is responsible for Homeland Defense and Defense Support of Civil Authorities.

An HH-65 Dolphin helicopter, from Coast Guard Air Stations Traverse City, Mich., flies over the Red River March 28, 2009, in response to the flooding. Another Dolphin helicopter, from Air Station New Orleans, accompanied them during the transit from Grand Forks to Fargo to stand-by for rescue operations. (U.S. Coast Guard photo/Petty Officer 3rd Class Erik Swanson)

Machinery Technician 3rd Class Dan Fraley of Station Sault Ste. Marie assists an Oxbow, N.D. resident and her faithful friend as they disembark from the station's airboat along the Red River in North Dakota, Thursday, March 26, 2009. The station is one of three airboat crews from the Ninth Coast Guard District which conducted house-to-house searches for citizens in distress ubder the incident command of Coast Guard Sector Upper Mississippi River in flood-prone communities on the Red River. (U.S. Coast Guard/Photo by Petty Officer Bill Colclough)

Many more pics to be found here.

This post will remain at the top all day Friday and Saturday. It will be updated as necessary.

Here are some sites for up to the minute and current flood news from Fargo and the other flood-threatened areas in North Dakota. Keep in mind that CNN and the other media outlets on line may be operating with news that is as much as 12 hours old.

The best should be this Twitter search. Fargo OR “Grand Forks” OR “Red River” OR #flood09 OR #fargoflood

River levels at Fargo on Twitter: @redriveratfargo

KVLY11 Valley News Live on Twitter: @valleynewslive

The Fargo Forum, the local daily newspaper, has a blog with news.

FEMA response

North Dakota road conditions site

Facebook page: Fargo Flood 2009

Verizon Wireless

PHOTOS:
Military photos / National Guard: North Dakota Flooding

Mix of civilian and military pics: Red River Valley Flood 2009

Here are some new items that may be of interest as you follow the flooding on the Red River.

Oakport Township Tested by Fire

While the nation anxiously waited for the Red River to crest in Fargo, small towns like Oakport Township on the outskirts of Fargo were already dealing with their own devastating flooding. And in Oakport’s case, fire.

The house fire added another tragic dimension to the situation in Oakport Township. Giant flames ate a huge gash through the roof as black smoke soared into the sky, all while a line of sandbags surrounded the base of the home.

Clay County Emergency Operations Center spokesman Dan Olson said fire crews couldn’t get closer than 200 feet from the home in Oakport Township because the area around it was so flooded.

The cause of the fire isn’t known, but township officials have been telling residents who are evacuating to shut off gas and electricity before leaving their homes. No injuries were reported.

Sgt. Ryan Alderman of the Clay County Sheriff’s Department said authorities had rescued more than 120 people by boat in Oakport Township since Thursday night. About half of the rescued people called officials and requested help, while the others waved down boats while they were on patrol in the town of about 1,600 people.

Garrison Dam has resumed water releases

North Dakota’s Garrison Dam has resumed water releases, which should bolster Washburn’s drinking water supplies and help restart two power plants, an Army Corps of Engineers spokesman says.

The dam ceased releasing water at midafternoon Tuesday to help relieve flooding problems downstream at Bismarck.

That flooding had eased by late Thursday, when the dam began releasing 3,000 cubic feet of water per second. It was releasing 9,000 cubic feet per second by Friday afternoon, corps spokesman Paul Johnston said. The flow should be enough to bring the river’s level back up to the intake pipes at Washburn’s water treatment plant, he said.

The increased water supply also should help the Stanton and Leland Olds electric power plants resume their operations, Johnston said.