Our first Fargo winter lasted through April (I'm told that's unusual) and that led to our first Fargo flood or so that's what we expected.
Prior to moving, we were warned not to live too close to the Red River and to check the flood maps. We settled on a nice townhome, away from the river, yet close enough to highways and major street connections. We also had a nice ditch that separated the back of our home from the busy street providing some privacy. Here is a picture of that ditch from my scouting trip last July and our home is on the right.
At the time I was unaware this wasn't just any ditch or storm runoff. After speaking with the maintenance guys at move-in, I learned that this was part of the river diversion and is creatively named Drain 27. Fargo's record flood happened in 2009 and the city made major improvements to protect itself. What used to be a temporary levee is now my permanent ditch.
Although the first snowfall was pretty early even for Fargo, we had about average snowfall through January. The news and city officials would mention the flood possibilites time and again, but no one was really concerned. Then winter came with a vengeance and every Monday in February and March was another snowstorm. The snow piles kept growing and nothing was melting.
I've been through a few tropical storms and small hurricanes having lived in Hawaii, Miami, and Virginia Beach. Usually you have a couple days to almost a week to prepare for the storm. Flood preparation is not like that at all. Forecasters became concerned and the flood predictions flowed in almost daily starting mid-March. Everyone kept talking about when the "trigger" would occur and if it would be a rapid or slow melt. The city spent months planning on how many sandbags will be needed to protect the surrounding areas.
Once it finally warmed up towards the end of April, snow and ice melted rapidly. The river crest prediction kept fluctuating because we'd have more snow or rain added to what was already melting. Finally sandbags were dropped off at locations around the city.
High schoolers spent a day setting up sandbags to protect homes for the potential flooding.
Temporary levees were going up around the city to protect homes and businesses.
All the planning and flood protection was finally going to be put to the test. Had Fargo learned its lesson from 2009 and made enough improvements to withstand another major flood?
I guess the answer is yes. We reached major flood levels even though the river crested below the forecasted height. The permanent improvements that were made a couple years ago protected the city. The temporary levees and sandbags weren't even necessary. While I didn't want the city to actually flood, I had so much anticipation built up for flooding that I was somewhat disappointed nothing really happened.
As for our ditch, the water rose very quickly, although not enough to cause concern. It was actually quite pleasant to have a river running through our backyard.
After the flooding came "Cleanup Week" which can be described as citywide, dumpster diving curbside. While I would love to write a blog explaining all about that week, my friend, Laura, wrote a great blog about it last year. Check it out on here.
