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No Flood Damage Reported to Roseau (MN) Churches
ROSEAU, MN (June 13, 2002) - More than half of the 2,755 residents of this rural
northwest Minnesota community have been forced to leave due to severe
flooding, with at least two members of local Covenant churches affected by
the rising water, Covenant News Service has learned.
Roseau, located 10 miles south of the Canadian border, is home to the
Evangelical Covenant Church in Roseau and Bethel Mission Covenant Church,
located just outside of town.
Extremely heavy rainfall has created record water levels in the Roseau
River, according to an Associated Press report. The river level of 23 feet
is more than two feet above a 1996 record level. Minnesota Gov. Jesse
Ventura has declared a state of emergency in that area. No major damage has
been reported at the Polaris snowmobile manufacturing facility, however,
which is the community's largest employer. The local hospital and schools
also have escaped damage so far.
The Evangelical Covenant Church of Roseau has not suffered any water damage
to its building, according to Pastor Joe Elick who spoke by telephone late
this morning. (The accompanying photo shows Elick welcoming delegates to
this spring's Northwest Conference Annual Meeting held at the Roseau
church.) However, the homes of some church members are a different story.
About two dozen people are now staying at the church and a nearby Lutheran
church.
"I would say that easily over half the town has evacuated - we even
evacuated - and about 75 percent of the homes have sustained structural
damage," Elick said. "Our driveway washed out overnight and there is water
all down the main street and all of the businesses have damage. In some
places, water is waist high."
The U.S. Army of Engineers is attempting to construct a dyke to divert
water back to the Roseau River, said Elick. The Red Cross and Salvation
Army have sent representatives. "They couldn't get sandbags in here fast
enough, so they sent some by helicopter," added Elick, who has been the
Roseau pastor for 13 years.
Roseau experienced rainstorms beginning Sunday and continuing throughout
Monday. "Rain was coming so fast it was like a fog," said Elick. "Now, the
fields up north are like huge lakes."
Efforts to reach a spokesperson at Bethel Mission Covenant were not
successful. However, in an email message this morning, neighboring Baudette
Covenant Pastor Scott Christensen said he was told by a Rainy River
resident that an upriver dam east of Ft. Francis and International Falls
shows signs of structural damage, "which means serious trouble for all
towns downstream including Baudette and Rainy River," he added.
More information about the floods will be posted on this news site as it
becomes available.
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