Waiting for the Mouse

Floods are no stranger to Minot, N. Dak., a city of 35,000 on the Souris River. The community has been flooded three times this century. Last week residents prepared for yet another inundation.

As bulldozers hired by the Army Corps of Engineers put the finishing touches on some 50 miles of dikes, residents of the flood plain began moving their belongings out of their homes and storing them in the town auditorium and armory; the buildings soon resembled Sears Roebuck warehouses, cluttered with furniture, refrigerators, washing machines and television sets. The 12,000 evacuated from their homes settled down for what could be a long siege, finding rooms in local motels, beds in the homes of friends and relatives or cots in a crowded school gymnasium. Said Mayor Chester Reiten, whose town has already been declared a disaster area by the Federal Government: "We've done it so often, it's automatic."

Since 1969, the last time the Souris (French for mouse) broke through the dikes, more than $7 million has been spent on flood control measures. Some townspeople note that farmers have been clearing upstream lands to bring more land under cultivation; this, they feel, may have increased the amount of water emptying into the river and raised its levels. But agronomists say that the main reason for the river's rapid rise is the unusual amount of moisture in Saskatchewan, where the Souris originates; this winter's precipitation was 700% above normal, adding enormously to the amount of water draining into the river from the region's grasslands. Rains that fell late last week are only making a bad situation worse.

City officials, who keep a close watch on the Souris, have followed a carefully rehearsed plan in preparing for the floods. A well-staffed flood control center, resembling a military command post, was set up to begin coordinating an evacuation system and dike patrol. National Guardsmen and personnel from the local Air Force base were pressed into service to help. A Shrine Circus, scheduled to play the municipal auditorium last week, was canceled and the hall used for storage.

Delayed Dam. Many residents of Minot took the evacuation with equanimity. A few families joked about their annual "spring cleaning" as they watched moving vans load up their possessions for the trip to higher ground. Said Mrs. Doris Christensen: "We've got the cleanest houses in North Dakota." Others, especially those who own property in the flood plain, are less excited about the emergency. "If you sell your house in the valley, you're not going to make enough to buy one on the hill," said Mrs. Verna Hammer, who has taken up residence in a local school.

One thing does upset the townspeople: the lack of adequate flood control in the area. The Corps of Engineers has attempted to help by deepening the Souris' channel, but this spring's unusually high water levels could not be contained. Construction of a dam that could help hold back flood waters has been delayed by government red tape and is opposed by environmentalists and by farmers whose land might be flooded. Even if the project were to be approved, residents of Minot are likely to spend several more years warily watching the water. The earliest the dam could be completed is 1984.

This file is automatically generated by a robot program, so viewer discretion is required.