Recently, several areas of the Midwest have been hit by floods, and my community has been one of them. We’ve gotten a little bit of rain but not enough to cause floods. Instead, we have had warm weather which has melted the several feet of snow we have on the ground.
The real problem has been the large chunks of ice that have been stopping up drains, causing backups behind bridges and the still-frozen ground’s inability to absorb the water.
A few miles from my house, a good portion of one local unincorporated towns was underwater, even the fire department had to evacuate their vehicles. A few years back, the DNR had forced this town to remove its aging dam, one has to wonder if this flood would have happened, had that dam still been in place.
As I stood on the bridge to take photos, I could feel the heavy clunk, clunk, of the ice (and large trees!) hitting the bridge supports and cause the bridge to shudder. I didn’t stay on that bridge for long.
The next town upstream had to utilize backhoes to drag large, heavy pieces of ice out of the water, so that they wouldn’t build up and put pressure on the bridges. The damages along the river were devastating to homes, buildings and other personal property. Some families had to be evacuated.
Despite all the wreckage, one thing that stood out was the sense of community. Yes, people came to gawk, but they also came to help.
There’s a long road ahead to recover from these floods, but the resilience and refusal to give up is strong in these small communities, and together they will recover.
So, I’ll volunteer to help where I can, whether it be elbow grease or pocketbook. I ask you, my friends, to do the same. Open your hearts and hands for those in need for there are many… and step on it.
Looks like a town I lived in as a kid, it flooded every year, at least parts did. They would drop dynamite from helicopters to break up the ice that always got dammed up by the bridge. I know what it’s like to get flooded, happened to me 3years ago. Terrible mess, lost a lot too.
I’m not going to lie, dropping dynamite from helicopters sound like dangerous fun!
It certainly was fun to watch! There would be crowds out on those days!
Wow! These photos are intense! You did a great job of bringing us into your world with them and this post. I really hope you get all the help you need!
The community really pulled together to help clean up, it was wonderful to see!
Oh, that’s so neat! I bet!
It’ll take years for the community to recover from the floods, but what will remain is the camaraderie that developed during the clean up. Well done for getting involved in helping those affected. You should be proud of yourself.