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“EXPRESSING SYMPATHY FOR MIDWESTERN FLOOD VICTIMS” mentioning the U.S. Dept of Agriculture was published in the House of Representatives section on pages H11081-H11085 on Oct. 2, 2007.
The publication is reproduced in full below:
EXPRESSING SYMPATHY FOR MIDWESTERN FLOOD VICTIMS
Mr. WALZ of Minnesota. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and agree to the resolution (H. Res. 657) expressing heartfelt sympathy for the victims of the devastating thunderstorms that caused severe flooding during August 2007 in the States of Illinois, Iowa, Minnesota, Ohio, and Wisconsin, and for other purposes, as amended.
The Clerk read the title of the resolution.
The text of the resolution is as follows:
H. Res. 657
Whereas during August 2007, severe thunderstorms were responsible for bringing as much as 18 inches of torrential rain to parts of the States of Illinois, Iowa, Minnesota, Ohio, and Wisconsin, resulting in devastating floods;
Whereas these storms tragically took the lives of 14 people;
Whereas these storms injured countless other people, damaged or destroyed thousands of homes, and devastated businesses and institutions;
Whereas on August 21, 2007, the Governor of Minnesota declared Fillmore, Houston, Steele, Olmsted, Wabasha, and Winona Counties, Minnesota, to be in a state of disaster as a result of these storms, and subsequently Dodge County, Minnesota, received a Federal major disaster declaration as well;
Whereas on August 19, 2007, and in the days following, the Governor of Wisconsin declared Crawford, La Crosse, Richland, Sauk, Vernon, Columbia, Dane, Grant, Green, Iowa, Jefferson, Kenosha, Racine, and Rock Counties, Wisconsin, to be in a state of disaster as a result of these storms;
Whereas on August 22, 2007, and in the days following, the Governor of Iowa declared Appanoose, Boone, Calhoun, Cherokee, Davis, Humboldt, Mahaska, Palo Alto, Pocahontas, Van Buren, Wapello, Wayne, and Webster Counties, Iowa, to be in a state of disaster as a result of these storms;
Whereas on August 22, 2007, the Governor of Ohio declared Allen, Crawford, Hancock, Hardin, Putnam, Richland, Seneca, Van Wert, and Wyandot Counties, Ohio, to be in a state of disaster as a result of these storms;
Whereas on August 24, 2007, and in the days following, the Governor of Illinois declared Cook, DeKalb, DuPage, Grundy, Lake, LaSalle, Kane, Knox, McHenry, Warren, and Will Counties, Illinois, to be in a state of disaster as a result of these storms;
Whereas President Bush declared 7 counties in Minnesota, 7 counties in Ohio, and 7 counties in Wisconsin to be major disaster areas as a result of these storms, and individuals and families in these areas became eligible for Federal disaster assistance;
Whereas numerous individuals and entities have selflessly and heroically given of themselves and their resources to aid in the disaster relief efforts; and
Whereas the catastrophic injury, death, and damage in Illinois, Iowa, Minnesota, Ohio, and Wisconsin would have been even worse in the absence of local relief efforts: Now, therefore, be it
Resolved, That the House of Representatives--
(1) expresses heartfelt sympathy for the victims of the devastating thunderstorms that caused severe flooding during August 2007 in the States of Illinois, Iowa, Minnesota, Ohio, and Wisconsin;
(2) conveys gratitude to the local, State, and Federal officials and emergency personnel who responded swiftly to the crisis, including emergency management teams in each of the affected States, Michael Chertoff, Secretary of Homeland Security, and David Paulison, Administrator of the Federal Emergency Management Agency;
(3) recognizes the generous and selfless support of citizens, local businesses, the American Red Cross, the United Way, Catholic Charities, and the Salvation Army; and
(4) reaffirms support to helping the victims of the flooding rebuild their homes and lives.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from Minnesota (Mr. Walz) and the gentleman from Missouri (Mr. Graves) each will control 20 minutes.
The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Minnesota.
General Leave
Mr. WALZ. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on H. Res. 657.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the gentleman from Minnesota?
There was no objection.
Mr. WALZ of Minnesota. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Mr. Speaker, I thank Mr. Graves for joining us today. On August 18 and 19, torrential rains devastated communities all across the Midwest. In less than a 24-hour period, more than 18 inches of rain fell in some areas of southeast Minnesota causing severe flooding, mud slides, loss of property and loss of life. In my district in southeast Minnesota, seven people lost their lives as a result of these sudden and violent storms. Countless more were injured. Thousands of homes and businesses were damaged and destroyed. In community after community, people returned to their homes to discover that priceless family memories, literally all they owned, had been washed away in a matter of minutes. Roads and bridges had been swept away and must be rebuilt.
I went to many of these towns countless times. I saw the challenges that these people face. Let me give you one example. Rushford, Minnesota, sits in the beautiful Driftless area, the rolling hills and rich farmland of southeast Minnesota. It is a town of 1,700 people, with a vibrant Main Street, a great civic pride, and they are also defending State football champions from last year. This town was almost completely under water. I entered the town on the morning of the rains by boat. There was one small island, a dry bit of land that had a church, part of a local school and a city building. That was the only part of the town that was above water. People had to take boats to get to this island in which they were having meetings, receiving help, and even getting started on that very morning of the task of rebuilding.
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Even during the flood itself, Minnesotans were reaching out to their neighbor. In Minnesota City, during the worst of the flash floods, authorities ran out of all rescue equipment and rescue boats. Residents used their own boats to go from house to house, literally plucking people off the rooftops and bringing them to safety.
The response to this disaster has been inspiring. People from all across Minnesota and across the Nation have stepped forward to help. There have been blood drives, canned food drives, and waves and waves of volunteers who have come into the area to offer their help, open their hearts and homes.
This disaster was not limited to Minnesota. Similar storms pounded all across my neighboring district, and my good friend from Wisconsin
(Mr. Kind) experienced devastating damage, as well as Iowa, Illinois and Ohio also. All told, 14 people died as a result of these storms and the flash floods that it caused.
This resolution that the House considers today is one very, very small, but important way, to recognize the challenging times that these individuals have faced and will face. It expresses sympathy for their loss and gratitude to the State and Federal officials who responded swiftly. This resolution recognizes the generous support given by so many and reaffirms the support of this Congress for the flood victims and the immediate and heartfelt and serious disaster declaration help that came from FEMA and the Federal Government. President Bush was in Minnesota within days of this, reaffirming his support.
I urge my colleagues to support this resolution and to stand with Minnesota and those throughout the Midwest who have come through the flood waters and are now working to rebuild their lives. I am sorry to say, the same area received between 6 and 12 inches of rain in some areas last night and is experiencing heavy rains again today.
We have work to do, but the response so far has been truly inspiring.
Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. GRAVES. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Mr. Speaker, House Resolution 657 was introduced by Mr. Walz of Minnesota on September 17, 2007. The resolution expresses the heartfelt sympathy of the House of Representatives for the victims of severe flooding in the States of Illinois, Iowa, Minnesota, Ohio and Wisconsin during August of 2007. These storms took the lives of 14 people, injured countless others, and damaged or destroyed thousands of homes and devastated businesses and institutions.
In addition, this resolution conveys gratitude to local, State and Federal officials and emergency personnel who responded swiftly to the crisis. Their selfless actions saved lives and helped their communities in their efforts to recover from this disaster.
Additionally, this resolution is a fitting commendation to the generous and selfless support of local citizens, businesses and volunteer organizations. They have shown their heroism and compassion for their fellow citizens while facing such destruction.
The citizens of the States of Illinois, Iowa, Minnesota, Ohio and Wisconsin will work hard to rebuild and make every effort to ensure the recovery of their communities. In recognition of their efforts, this resolution reaffirms our support to help the victims of the flooding rebuild their homes and lives. I extend my heartfelt sympathy to all those affected by this tragedy, and to their families.
Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. WALZ of Minnesota. Mr. Speaker, at this time I want to yield as much time as he may consume to my colleague, my neighbor and my friend from Wisconsin whose district was greatly affected by this flooding. We have worked closely on this. It's through Mr. Kind's leadership, experience and forcefulness that we were able to secure, I believe probably in unprecedented fashion, the support we needed from the Federal Government.
With that, I yield to my friend from Wisconsin.
(Mr. KIND asked and was given permission to revise and extend his remarks.)
Mr. KIND. Mr. Speaker, I am honored to join Mr. Walz here today to offer this resolution expressing our concern and support to the victims of the flooding that ravaged our congressional districts and so many other States during those fateful days in August, but also to take a moment to express our eternal gratitude and thanks to the countless numbers of official agencies, to private organizations, to individuals who rose to the call of many people in great need during this time.
I personally saw Mr. Walz and the action that he immediately took when I visited southeastern Minnesota along with Senator Klobuchar from Minnesota to see some of the damage and get together with many of the first responders who were working around the clock to come to the aid of so many businesses and families and individuals affected by the flooding.
The rains started on August 18, and it seemed as if they were never going to stop. It was literally a torrential downpour; in some areas, from 12 to 20 inches in just a very short period of time. It's amazing to personally witness the severe devastation that an intense amount of rain can accomplish in a very short period of time.
Fortunately for Mr. Walz and myself, we represent two very beautiful congressional districts, but part of that beauty is the fact that we have a lot of hills and valleys and coulees that act like a funnel effect when you have the so-called ``1,000-year rain'' take place within a 24-hour period. That is exactly what happened; the rain came, the water backed up and started devastating community after community.
Unfortunately, at the end of the rain, there were 14 people who lost their lives. Fortunately for myself, there were none in my congressional district, but we did have some loss of life in Mr. Walz's district. There were also three electrocutions associated with the rain and the flooding that occurred in Madison.
Short of loss of life or physical injury, there is nothing more devastating than having your personal belongings washed away, whether it was in your home or in your businesses or on your farm.
I was down in one of my communities in the southern part of my congressional district, Gays Mills, shortly after the flooding, and they described to me horrific conditions where the rain came so quickly that within a matter of an hour there was five feet of water standing on the main street in their downtown area. I was talking to two teenage girls who, that evening, literally left their homes only to see the rising water and the swift current coming through the main street; and they jumped into a tree in order to get out of the way, it was coming so quickly, only to be rescued by a volunteer fire department personnel in a boat that took them to high land. You heard countless stories of this.
I guess it's times like this during great personal tragedy when you also witness the greatness of humanity and the response that occurred, from the various agencies at the Federal, State and local level that immediately geared up and started rushing in help and supplies, to the private organizations and businesses, to the Salvation Army, Red Cross, Catholic charities that were on the ground with their staff and their volunteers to provide assistance, to also FEMA.
One of the fortunate aspects at the time of this tragedy was Hurricane Dean didn't hit landfall in the United States, so FEMA, in preparation for Hurricane Dean, had a lot of supplies, they had a lot of personnel ramped up in the southern part of our country anticipating the worst of the hurricane. When it didn't arrive, they were able to redeploy a lot of their personnel and resources up to our area to provide assistance immediately.
I also want to take a moment to thank Director David Paulison of FEMA, who personally came on an inspection tour shortly after the flooding to see the devastation himself, and his office out of the Chicago regional office who were there very quickly.
With the help of Representative Walz and our respective Senators, as well as Governor Jim Doyle of WI, we were able to get quick State declarations, to be followed by a Natural Disaster Declaration in order to provide much-needed relief to the victims of the flooding. There's still a lot of work that needs to be done. There's still a lot of assistance that is going to have to occur in the community and in our respective States to try to make people whole.
On a lighter, happier note, I was fortunate to be home on Sunday to visit Gays Mills during their annual apple festival celebration and parade. This was a little more than a month after the floodwaters that were 5 feet deep in their town, yet they strove to make sure that they were going to keep this celebration, try to keep that continuity of tradition in their community. It was a wonderful day; the sun shown on us, the kids were having a great time, and that little sense of normalcy brought some smiles on a lot of faces in that community.
But if it wasn't for the quick reaction, again, of the agencies, but especially the family, the friends, the neighbors who responded to people in need, we could have suffered a fate much worse than what we did.
Again, I want to thank Representative Walz for the work that he did. I look forward to continuing the work that still needs to take place, because this isn't going to get fixed overnight. It's going to be a slow, laborious process. There's nothing worse than being denied access to a home or businesses. Just now, people are able to go in and have access for the first time.
Many of our farms, too, were devastated just before the crop was supposed to be harvested. Many livestock were lost in the flooding. Again, you work so hard and long all year long, and then just at the time you are going to go to market with the fruits of your labor, something like this takes place.
We also were fortunate that 20 earthen dams in Vernon County in my congressional district held up. It is a great tribute to the engineers and their foresight over 20 or 30 years ago that constructed these earthen dams that they held up, or the damage and devastation could have been much worse if they had given out and those floodwaters had released further down the valley.
So I want to thank all of those that were involved in providing much-
needed and quick assistance to the individuals and to the communities that were affected by it. I again want to express my gratitude to FEMA and their quick reaction, Director Paulison and his team on the ground. But there is still more work to be done. It is good to see in a tragedy like this that there is that type of capability, both at the local and Federal and State level, in order to come to the aid of many citizens who needed it.
In particular, I would like to thank the many people who were involved in the recovery effort, only a few of which are named here. In Vernon County: Cindy Ackerman, Glenda Sullivan and the Emergency Management staff; Elizabeth Johnson and the Public Health staff; Pamela Eitland and the Human Services staff; Gene Cary and the Sheriffs Department staff; Mark Rahr and the Viroqua Police Department staff; Steve Skrede and the Viroqua Fire Department staff; Kelly Jacobs and the Land Conservation staff; Virgil Hanold and the Highway Department staff; Pat Peterson and the Aging Department staff; Bethel Butikk Food Pantry; Linda Nederlow, Public Information Officer; Thomas Spenner, County Board Chair; Cathy Lewison and the Farm Service Agency staff.
In Crawford County: Roger Martin and the Emergency Management staff; Laurel Hestetuene of Soldiers Grove; Larry McCarn and Maura Otis of Gays Mills; Jerry Moran and Sheriff's Department staff; Ron Leys, County Board Chair; Dennis Pelock and the Highway Department staff; Gary Knickerbacker; John Baird and the Farm Service Agency staff; Russ Hagen and the Land Conservation staff; Sara Ryan and the Human Services staff; Gloria Wall and the Public Health staff.
In La Crosse County: Keith Butler and the Emergency Management staff; Lynetta Kopp, Town of Shelby Chair; Dennis Osgood and the Highway Department staff; Randy Roeck and the Shelby Fire Department staff; Steve Doyle, County Board Chair; Ben Bosshart and the Farm Service Agency staff.
In Richland County: Darin Gudgeon and Emergency Management staff; Darrell Berglin and the Sheriff's Department staff; Randy Schoeneberg and the Highway Department staff; Ann Greenheck, County Board Chair; Jared Reuter and the Farm Service Agency staff; Marianne Stanek and the Public Health staff; Cathy Cooper and the Land Conservation staff; Dean Winchell and family; Bob Naegele and members of the Pine Valley Repeater Club ARES/RACES; Harriet Pedley, Ron Fruit and the WRCO radio station staff; Kim Clark and the Richland County Ambulance Service; Wes and Michelle Starkey; Richland Center Police Department; Rudy Nigel; Ken Anderson; Bob Bindl, Darrell Slama, Brian Jones, Dan Wilson, and the staff of the Richland County Fire Departments; Richland Center Public Works; DNR Warden Mike Nice and the DNR staff.
In Sauk County: Jeff Jelink and the Emergency Management staff; Marty Krueger, County Board Chair; Randy Stammen and the Sheriff's Department staff; Steve Muchow and the Highway Department staff; Cindy Bodendein and the Health Department staff; Joe Van Berkel and the Land Conservation staff; William Orth and the Human Services staff; Trish Vandre and the Commission on Aging staff; Curtis Norgard and the Farm Service Agency staff.
In Grant County: Steve Braun and Julie Loeffelholz, Emergency Management; Eugene Bartels, County Board Chair; John Wiederholt and the Farm Service Agency staff; Jeffery Kindrai and the Health Department staff.
In Iowa County: Ken Palzkill and the Emergency Management staff; Judy Lindholm and the Commission on Aging staff; June Meudt and the Health Department staff; Leo Klosterman and the Highway Department staff; Jim McCaulley and the Land Conservation staff; Darin Smith and the Social Services staff; Mark Masters, County Board Chair; Ned Johnson and the Farm Service Agency staff.
Further, I would like to thank: Ashley Furniture; AmeriCorps volunteers; Cheryl Hancock and the American Red Cross staff; Terri Leece and the Salvation Army staff; Deacon Richard Sage and the Catholic Charities staff; the Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade, and Consumer Protection; the Wisconsin State Patrol; the Wisconsin Department of Corrections; the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources; the Wisconsin National Guard; the Natural Resources Conservation Service; and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.
Mr. Speaker, I wholeheartedly support this resolution and urge my colleagues to join me in voting for its passage.
Mr. GRAVES. Mr. Speaker, I certainly want to associate myself with the words of Mr. Kind and Mr. Walz.
Mr. Speaker, I have no further speakers, and I yield back the balance of my time.
Mr. WALZ of Minnesota. Mr. Speaker, I say thank you to my colleague from Wisconsin, whose leadership and voice was instrumental. I also want to thank Mr. Graves. I think it is very important as Americans watch, and watch the proceedings on this floor, to understand the solidarity that is in this body and to hear my friends from Missouri and across the Nation stand with us in time of tragedy and understand that we will work together, we will solve these problems. I think it is encouraging to understand that we are making progress, we are making changes. I applaud that.
Mr. KIND. Mr. Speaker, if the gentleman will yield, we would be remiss, too, if we didn't acknowledge the help and the work that our respective staffs did during this time. They were 24/7 on the spot trying to provide assistance. I know my staff didn't get much sleep during those weeks following the flooding. I know Mr. Walz's staff was the same way. I just want to take a moment to acknowledge their hard work.
Mr. WALZ of Minnesota. Mr. Speaker, reclaiming my time, I thank the gentleman for that. It absolutely is a team effort in this. I think the greatness that is this country is that when in times of tragedy and times of need, we can put many, many things aside and come together.
As Mr. Kind pointed out so clearly, to have Director Paulison from FEMA on the ground within a matter of about 72 hours of this tragedy and Secretary Chertoff from Homeland Security personally be on the ground to assess this, and to have President Bush in Minnesota and guarantee that we would get this declaration and then follow through, I think the American public should feel very, very good about that.
We have a lot of work to do, but the word coming out of our district and the word going to our staffs as they are working with people is that in this tragedy, they felt there was a face on a faceless bureaucracy. They felt America was there for them. They felt they could count on this body doing everything they could. For that, I thank everyone in here. I encourage my colleagues to adopt the resolution to show that continued solidarity.
Mr. OBERSTAR. Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of H. Res. 657, a resolution to express sympathy for the victims of the thunderstorms that caused severe flooding during August 2007 in the States of Illinois, Iowa, Minnesota, Ohio, and Wisconsin.
I rise once again, as I did in May in the wake of devastating forest fire in the Gunflint Trail area in my district and again in August after the tragic collapse of the Interstate 35W bridge in Minneapolis, to express my heartfelt sympathy to our fellow citizens in Minnesota, and in surrounding States, in the aftermath of the destruction.
These severe floods serve as another reminder of the millions of men and women who serve this nation as police officers, firefighters, and emergency medical personnel who place themselves in great danger every day in order to protect each one of us. These well-trained, highly-
skilled individuals are truly on the front lines in preparing for, responding to, and mitigating damages from a variety of hazards. They deserve our deepest thanks and respect.
Twenty-four hours a day, every day of the year, all over this country, when any type or tragedy enters our lives, from a medical emergency to a large-scale natural disaster, terrorist attack, or other incident, our Nation's emergency responders are the first on the scene to provide professional services, expert help, aid and comfort. These heroic, selfless individuals will tell you they are ``just doing their job''.
We rise today to also acknowledge and praise the support of local businesses, the American Red Cross, Catholic Charities, the United Way, and the Salvation Army who contributed to the local relief effort. Their boundless generosity and caring are just one of the pillars of recovery on which we have come to rely.
While we can never adequately express our gratitude to the organizations and the brave men and women who serve as our first responders, this resolution is a fitting tribute.
I strongly support this resolution and urge its passage.
Mr. PETERSON of Minnesota. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor the courageous people of southeastern Minnesota who have banded together to rebuild their communities after the devastating floods this past August.
Minnesota has had a tough summer with the unanticipated bridge collapse in the Twin cities and now extensive flooding in numerous smaller communities. Minnesota is known for its strong spirited communities and for how people come together to help one another in times of crisis. There is much to be admired in the way Minnesotans reached out to help their fellow neighbors.
It reminds me of how truly devastating storms can be. In 1997 and 2001, my district saw some terrible flooding along the Red River and its tributaries. I remember how hard it was for people to rebuild their lives, to have to start all over again after losing everything.
Flood recovery is a long and hard road, but I know that southeastern Minnesota has the support of the Minnesota legislature, the Minnesota Congressional Delegation and others across the State who have pitched in to help rebuild. I also want to commend the Minnesota National Guard and local officials, and those everyday heroes amongst us who saved lives, led their communities and helped to provide relief for all who needed it.
My heart goes out to the families that have lost loved ones and to those who have suffered injury in that devastating flooding. I pray that the healing will be swift and that your communities will recover and rebuild, stronger than ever.
Mr. WALZ of Minnesota. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the gentleman from Minnesota (Mr. Walz) that the House suspend the rules and agree to the resolution, H. Res. 657, as amended.
The question was taken; and (two-thirds being in the affirmative) the rules were suspended and the resolution, as amended, was agreed to.
A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.
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