Guardsmen carefully help Rose Silbernagl down the stairs during her recent evacuation from flood waters.

“I’m a Legionnaire Auxiliary member for more than 50 years. The Soldiers don’t only save our country, they save the people, one by one. I never thought they’d save me,” said Rose Silbernagl, 87, of Linton.

Rose lives on Schley Avenue, close to the courthouse.

“I’ve lived there since ’51, and this is the first time I had to get the heck out of there,” she said.

Rose is a widow, having lost her husband of 62 years two years ago. She also has a bad heart, and is on oxygen, but she’d shared her roof with four who were flooded out earlier: Larry Biedelspacher, Charlie and Lilian Abel and Lorraine Baumgartner. When her sewer backed up, she still didn’t want to leave, but her 15 children called her and insisted. One said, “Ma, we listened to you all those years, now you have to listen to us!”

Sgt. Andrew Rohrich was one of the Soldiers who helped Rose get out of the water and over to the county courthouse, which serves as a clearinghouse for evacuees. Rohrich is a Linton native who now lives in Bismarck, where he works full time for the Guard, coordinating military funeral honors.

Rose has known him since he was knee high, and she joked, “There’s a reason there was a flood – so I can see you guys!”

She meant Andrew and his brothers, Michael and Paul, who ran into her at the community food area in the courthouse basement.

“Their mom and I were such good friends,” she said. She also ran into Nathan Meidinger, and congratulated him on his recent win of the Class B Academic All-State award. Rose worried about her granddaughter, Della, who recently had surgery, but she didn’t worry about herself.

“Just have to make the best of it,” she said before leaving to stay with her sister-in-law, Angie Silbernagel.

North Dakota National Guard
by Sgt. Ann Knudson

UPDATE: Two maps for North Dakota to keep bookmarked.

1. North Dakota Road Conditions – western part of the state is bad as of 3/24/09 at 9:30 CDT
2. Road and Weather Cameras

Air National Guard personnel awaiting in processing for flood operations 2009.

N.D. National Guard Helicopter Crew Rescues Stranded Citizens

In response to a request from emergency services officials of Grant County, N.D., through the N.D. Department of Emergency Services, a N.D. Army National Guard Black Hawk helicopter was dispatched to rescue fellow North Dakotans stranded by rising flood waters. An additional crew of Soldiers responded by ground transportation to help in Linton, N.D.

The air emergency request was met within one hour, with the helicopter launching from Bismarck at about 6 p.m., on March 22. It was piloted by Maj. Paul Helton and Chief Warrant Officer Monte Myers with crew chiefs Staff Sgt. Mike Carlson and Sgt. Monte Weiand.

The first rescue was of two citizens and two dogs from a farm in rural Carson, N.D. The second rescue of two citizens was from a farm near New Leipzig, N.D. Both farms were surrounded by four to five feet of floodwaters, making overland rescue impossible.

About 20 Soldiers and National Guard equipment also left for Linton, N.D., within two hours’ notice last night to assist in evacuating portions of the town, filling sandbags and providing traffic control points in support of local law enforcement.

“We’ve had guys that are 90 years old and have never seen it [water] come up this hard, this fast,” said Linton Sheriff Gary Sanders. “We had rain a month ago that froze up all the culverts and held everything back. That little bit of rain we had earlier today broke everything loose. Both Spring Creek and Beaver Creek began to flow, plus there were some ice jams west of Linton. We got a tracked excavator with a 60-foot boom and broke up the ice jams at the bridges. The water dropped for an hour, then rose again. It’s just coming up and coming up. When something like this happens, you’re grateful for any help you can get. Having access to the Guard and the resources they provide is a good thing.”

Linton Emergency Manager Shawna Paul agreed, saying, “Nobody’s ever seen water like this [in Linton]. You know when you need help you can call on the Guard.”

About 260 Soldiers and Airmen continue to respond to flood conditions all across the state, assisting with sandbagging operations, providing dike patrol and security, and breaking up ice packs on the Red River near Wahpeton that are causing water to overflow its banks.

North Dakota National Guard Sgt. 1st Class Ched Phillips and Spc. James Gross fill sandbags in Linton, N.D., the night of March 22. Photo by Ann Knudson

Guard Aids Linton in Flood
Story by Ann Knudson

Eighteen Bismarck Soldiers responded on two hours’ notice to a call from Linton on Sunday night, March 21. The town was hit by rapid flooding, and needed help with traffic control, filling sandbags, and rescuing people from flooded houses.

Sheriff Gary Sanders said, “We’ve had guys that are 90 years old and have never seen it [water] come up this hard, this fast. We had rain a month ago that froze up all the culverts and held everything back. That little bit of rain we had earlier today broke everything loose. Both Spring Creek and Beaver Creek began to flow, plus there were some ice jams west of Linton. We got a tracked excavator with a sixty foot boom and broke up the ice jams at the bridges. The water dropped for an hour, then rose again. It’s just coming up and coming up. When something like this happens, you’re grateful for any help you can get. Having access to the Guard and the resources they provide is a good thing.”

Linton Emergency Manager Shawna Paul said, “Nobody’s ever seen water like this [in Linton]. You know when you need help you can call on the Guard.”

“Anything to help out somebody that’s in need,” said Spc. Jarett Dinius, Bismarck. Dinius works full time for the 112th Aviation as an administration NCO.

The Soldiers brought four humvees and two LMTV’s for moving people out of flooded areas. Light Medium Tactical Vehicles, the successor to the 2 1/2 ton truck known as the “deuce and a half.” They have a high road clearance, their cargo area is lined with fold-down passenger seats, and “they’re a joy to drive,” said Master Sgt. Keith Brown. The 112th Aviation got the LMTV’s last year.

Soldiers from 112th Aviation, Joint Force Headquarters and 68th Troop Command participated in the mission.