By Patrick Tepoorten

The torrential rain and resulting flooding of Oct. 4 took center stage in Rush City on Monday Oct. 10, as the council met and reviewed the situation in its entirety. Mike Kraemer, of the engineering firm of SEH, was on hand and led off the discussion with an overview of how the period between Tuesday and Wednesday afternoon progressed.

Kraemer referred to the amount of rain, which he estimated at eight inches in an 18-hour period, as a ì2000 year event,î and noted that a rainfall of that magnitude is not something that any public infrastructure is prepared to handle.

Complicating matters was the five inches of rain the area received just a week before, which in itself is considered a 100-year event. ìBasically, what you had here was a 100-year event and a 2000-year event back to back,î he explained.

Kraemer concluded by saying that the storm sewer system Rush City has in place, which is capable of handling a 100-year event, worked as well as it was designed to do. The problem was simply a matter of ìtoo much rain.î

SEHís Bob Moberg also took the floor and informed the council that the cityís sanitary sewer system had taken on quite a bit of water as a result of the storm. ìThose systems were never designed for this kind of water. The city crew had to install a bypass pump just to keep up,î he said.

Rush City Fire Chief Bob Carlson was complimentary of how all the various agencies involved; the many fire departments, the Sheriffís Department, city crews, local businesses, and volunteers all worked together through the night to manage the flooding.

ìMany, many people participated,î Carlson said.

All in all, roughly 2,500 sandbags were deployed throughout the area and Carlson pointed out that they were used on a case by case basis. ìWe got ridiculed for not sandbagging every house, but it wasnít storm water in many cases it was sewer. If there was the potential to save a place we went ahead and did it,î he concluded.

Chisago County Emergency Management Director Jim Halstrom wrapped up the overview by informing the council that not nearly enough damage was done to city infrastructure to qualify for mitigation funds. Damage to public infrastructure must reach a $6.1 million threshold statewide before that federal relief would be available. That threshold was not reached.

Following the summary of events, Rush City resident Bill Dopp showed photographs of a culvert near his residence at South Field Estates that had become covered with branches, and questioned the council as to how often the storm sewers are cleaned.

City Administrator Daniel Hoffman did not know offhand how often those pipes are cleaned, only that they are ìjettedî periodically.

Dopp was critical of the sheriffís office response to the emergency. He alleged that the caretaker at South Field Estates had attempted to call 911 three times, but was hung up on twice. Furthermore, that someone from that department drove recklessly down a road adjacent to South Field Estates, sending large waves into some of the town homes there. He also alleged that residents there never saw a response from the fire department and that the one sheriffís deputy that was on site briefly, ìdrove away.î

This non-response, according to Dopp, resulted in he and his neighbors having to evacuate an elderly neighbor themselves, using Doppís boat.

Neither Mayor Mike Skalsky nor Carlson were aware of the situation that resulted in Doppís complaints. Both said they would discuss Doppís complaints with Sheriff Todd Rivard and Carlson added, ìIf there is a problem, we want to fix it.î

In a Tuesday interview, Halstrom added that there are ìtwo sides to every story,î and reiterated that the city would be investigating the complaint.

Captain Keith Hoppe declined to comment on the complaints until such a time that he has had a chance to investigate the complaints personally.

Resident Wanda Erickson was also on hand at the meeting, and informed the council that her home on Bremer Ave. received large amounts of run-off, primarily from the north. And, although most areas of the city drained relatively quickly following the storm, her property remained inundated for three to four days.

Skalsky responded that the city does need to find a way to address the water that comes down from the north. He mentioned the construction of a dyke system as a possibility and assured Erickson that diverting water from the north was something that the city does need to address.

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