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CWS Situation Report: Spring 2007 Minnesota flooding

March 20, 2007

A warm day in west-central Minnesota melted ice and snow so rapidly it swelled the Little Minnesota River and Lake Traverse, flooding the small town of Browns Valley, N. Much of the flooding came from ice jams, as chunks of flowing ice became trapped by bridges in such quantities it restricted the area’s natural drainage.

Flood waters consumed roughly one third of Browns Valley's homes and businesses. Impact of the flooding is high, as only around 600 people call this town on the Minnesota-South Dakota border home. It is the population center of Traverse County, where only around 3,800 people live.

VULNERABLE COMMUNITY WATCH: Census figures estimate one out of four people in Browns Valley are elderly. A preliminary damage assessment reveals at least a dozen homes of elderly residents have been destroyed, a figure that could increase as canvassing of the community continues. The low-lying land along the river and lake is home to predominately Native American and low-income populations.

Also of concern is the community's economic ability to recover from such catastrophic loss. Browns Valley's population is declining considerably more rapidly than Minnesota’s rate of attrition. Younger workers with expendable incomes are rare in Traverse County, and small local economies frequently lack capacity to recovery from natural disasters without significant state, federal and voluntary agency assistance. Little or no emergency or alternative housing is available.

CWS RESPONSE: CWS Disaster Response and Recovery Liaison Tom Davis is participating in the response efforts in concert with Minnesota's Voluntary Agencies Active in Disasters (VOAD) chapter. Davis is on-site in Browns Valley this week to assist in organizing recovery efforts. VOAD conference calls are being held to facilitate initial networking.

CWS does not anticipate issuance of an appeal at this time, but provides this information as an alert to faith-based partners of possible requests from local congregations, judicatory offices, or state/regional disaster response entities for funding support for emergency relief to families.

Media Contact:
Lesley Crosson, CWS/New York, 212-870-2676;
Jan Dragin, 781-925-1526;

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