Disaster Recovery News

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For the latest on flooding activity across North Dakota, please visit the Department of Emergency Services website.

To report damages to your home, please call the Flood Damage Hotline at 1-877-212-0316 or fill out the Flood Survey.

ND Road Conditions are available on the NDDOT website; always learn about road conditions before traveling during a flood. North Dakota Travel Information is also available from any phone by dialing 511.

Learn about recovering from a flood.

As the Red River’s water levels begin to recede, residents of Fargo, North Dakota prepare to clean-up their communities and being the recovery process.

First, bags of sand and clay in the metro area will be removed next week. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers will be in charge of the clean-up efforts and will be focusing on the arterial streets first. They will remove dikes that were built in the city and then move into the neighborhoods to do the same. After, crews will continue their clean-up efforts in neighborhoods that did not have dikes built. This process will continue ’round the clock, 24 hours a day, until all the dikes are removed.

Even though it only took about nine days to put up the sandbags and clay, it could take up to 2-3 weeks to remove them. Students from the local college and the Fargo School District will be contracted to help with the clean-up efforts.

More on the Fargo clean-up efforts.

Flooding is one of the most common natural disasters in the United States. When cleaning up after a flood, one does not have to throw away flood damaged documents, wet photos, or books.  Document restoration can help salvage these items and the same company that provides this type of service most likely will also be able to dry and restore other types of items damaged by flood waters.

Learn more about recovering after a flood.

Residents of North Dakota affected by the severe winter storms and flooding after March 13, 2009 can register to receive assistance by registering online at www.disasterassistance.gov or by calling FEMA’s toll-free telephone number (800-621-FEMA (3362) or TTY 800-462-7585).

Aid available will cover emergency home repair, temporary housing, replacement grants, and other needs that may not be covered by insurance policies. This aid, however, will mostly cover only basic needs and not entire losses, which will be evaluated on a case-by-case basis.

FEMA has stated the following on their site:

“When applying for help, be sure to have the following information available:

• Your current telephone number;
• Your address at the time of the disaster and the address where you now are staying;
• Your Social Security number, if available;
• A general list of damages and losses you suffered;
• If insured, the name of your company or agent and your policy number;
• Bank account coding if you wish to speed up your assistance with direct deposit.”

Check out FEMA’s site for more information on receiving assistance.

Learn more about recovering from a flood.

The latest blow to North Dakota, after residents have scrambled to protect their homes and business from rising flood waters, are continued winter storms. The snow that has fallen could raise the levels of the rising rivers once it has melted.

The freezing temperatures, along with 30 mph winds, are weakening the levees that are holding the waters that are now well above flood-stage. Chunks of ice that have frozen in the river could hit the levees as they flow with the currents.

Engineers have recently discovered a crack in the dikes that they have been monitoring around the clock. The crack discovered has been checked-on every 15 minutes for significant weaknesses that could flood the city of Fargo. If this crack has grown, officials are prepared to call in the Army Corps of Engineers to evacuate the city. Corps officials are ready in a nearby parking lot.

More on this story.

Learn about recovering from a flood.