Everything around here is surreal. Imagine that you find out that the government is going to flood part of your town in 14 days. So you have 14 days to try to figure out what to do to protect the city water, electric and sewer systems, 14 days to build levees and sandbag whatever you can, 14 days for people who want to, to evacuate and try to find other places to live, and 14 days to wake up every morning wondering when it will be bad, how bad it will be and what a mess we have to clean up....in 2 months
Then in the South Dakota portion of the area it's like the DMZ. National Guard troops everywhere. Blac hawk helicopters moving 1 ton sandbags. Police telling homeowners when and if they can go to their houses. Then an order to the same people who were working night and day on their houses that as of midnight last Friday, if you leave you can't come back for 2 months or more. If you stay, you may not have electricity and we can't guarantee you'll be able to get out.
On the Nebraska side of the river, there are severe restrictions on sand bags and even people stealing sand bags from houses that were surrounded and the owners left. While The Dunes get the National Guard and all the free sand bags they want, across the river, where it will flood just as bad, people have to buy them. It's insane. Rumors that dams are breaking or bowing or other crazy things are running rampant. It's exhausting even if you aren't doing anything to help.
Someone said the other day that psychologically they thought a tornado would be easier. It hits you and you know right away what damage was done and can start recovering. The folks in the way of the flooding have the luxury of 2 weeks to prepare, but it's two weeks of this huge thing looming over you and you know it's coming and when it's coming. But you also know that once it gets here, it will be here for 2 months before it starts to go away and you can see what damage was done. Then you can start to recover.
I think we'll all be better once the water gets here. It's just to strange in the meantime
I haven't really done that much to help, at least not compared to others. I've done sandbags a couple times and I've taken lots of photos and shared them with the flood group. They do appreciate that, so I guess that's a way of helping too.
Anyway, that's my rant, my update and my whatever....gotta go to a meeting. Glad I'm leaving town this weekend...I'll probably spend alot of time on the computer, checking up on the folks back home...
