Big Sioux on the Warpath
To the south, the Big Sioux had already produced what officials called the worst flood of the century. Entire villages on this South-Dakota-Iowa borderline river had to be evacuated. As in the Red River basin, thousands of square miles of rich farmland were inundated.
At Sioux Falls, South Dakota, a channel had been built to divert excess water from the Big Sioux around the city in times of flooding. This year wooden extensions several feet high had to be attached to the top of the diversion channel to keep it from spilling over — and it looked bad for a while. But the system worked far better than officials had dared to expect.
About fifty homes were flooded when a dike broke, but even this was small compared to what might have been.
The Upper Mississippi
At St. Paul the Mississippi stretched toward its 1965 record crest of 26.1 feet — and then drew back 1.6 feet shy of the mark. More than one million gallons per second flowed down the river at its crest. This is fully fifteen times the normal rate and about one and one-half times the maximum flow that is expected once every fifty years.
Riverside roads in St. Paul were under several feet of water as were the train depot and the downtown airport. Several inches of water were reported in the sub-basement of the main post office building which also happens to house the Headquarters for the St. Paul District of the Army Corps of Engineers.
As the 50-mile-long crest of the Mississippi moved slowly south, most of the river towns were ready. Many already had permanent levees and these were now being reinforced. Temporary emergency dikes were being built in many critical areas.
As the crest meandered toward the Gulf of Mexico, it gradually spread out and lost its momentum and the big Mississippi flood of 1969 was over.
Summing It Up
It would be impossible to catalog and chronicle what happened along each flooded river and in all the river cities and towns. But as Governor Guy said when requesting to President Nixon that North Dakota be declared a disaster area: "Destruction in many communities is greater than any in history."
Perhaps the most impressive characteristic of the disaster was that flooding occurred in so many rivers spread out over such a wide area. It is true that big rivers like the Red and Mississippi did not reach an all-time high, though they came very close. But to have the Red, the Mississippi, the Mouse, the Big Sioux, the St. Croix, the Minnesota, the West Des Moines, the Blue Earth, the James, the Cheyenne, and many others all flood to near-record (and some to record) proportions at the same time was quite unusual.
The most extensive damage by far was in the St. Paul District which included most of the critical areas in Minnesota, North Dakota, Wisconsin, and some parts of Iowa, South Dakota and upper Michigan. The damage caused by the spring floods was also near-record when considering the overall total, and record when considering agricultural and transportation damages.
In the St. Paul district total damage stood at well over $100,000,000! Of this amount, a record $40,000,000 was lost by agriculture and a record $29, 000,000 was lost by transportation (roads, railroads, etc).
Though $24,000,000 in damages were suffered in urban areas, this was less than half the $55,000,000 record loss sustained in 1965. It was in the urban areas that Operation Foresight really paid off.
In the St. Paul District, it cost more than $8,000,000 to build 82 miles of emergency dikes, provide 5,800,000 sandbags and more than 40 miles of plastic sheeting, to pump water, dynamite ice jams, and carry out all the other flood-fighting activities of Operation Foresight. But that $8,000,000 was well spent.
Operation Foresight saved an estimated $200,000,000 in damages! Even with Operation Foresight, the damage was bad enough. Without it, the results would have been far more tragic.
Will It Happen Again?
The 1969 spring floods in the Northern U.S. are now history. But what about future years? Is there any way to prevent these disasters?
What causes floods of this magnitude? Are poor soil and water conservation practices to blame, as some claim?
Man's ruthless and greedy activities in destroying, polluting and depleting our land and water resources are not to be minimized. What man has done to the earth is a disgrace and a tragedy. Our colorful free booklet, Our Polluted Planet, makes this point clear.
Some activities of man undoubtedly do affect and upset the entire weather pattern to some degree. In this sense, man does contribute excesses of weather which cause flooding. The plains should have been allowed to retain more grass cover and mountains more forest cover to slow the runoff from snow melt and rains.
The fact remains, however, that no amount of soil and water conservation practice can completely prevent floods like those experienced this spring in any flat floodplain.
As Colonel Hesse of the Army Corps of Engineers said while surveying the flooded area by air, "These floods are not man-made. When you get up in the air and look at it, you can see that man has very little to do with causing a flood of this type."
Floods were occurring in the 1800's — long before man's activities had any significant influence. Some of these flat valleys should have been treated as floodplains, as the river Nile is.
"Man doesn't make big floods like this," said another official. "Nature does. All that man should do is get out of the way."
That would be a good idea — and a partial solution. Man should have stayed out of the way. Buildings on a flood-plain should be on stilts or mounds.
Many Live in High-Risk Areas
It may come as a surprise, but government surveys show that an estimated ten percent of American families live in floodplains or coastal areas subject to periodic hurricanes and other storms! That is 20,000,000 people!
People who live in floodplains ought to expect to experience flooding. It's a simple matter of cause and effect.
"A flood is a natural phenomenon which we all should recognize. It is nature's way of carrying off an excess flow of water," an engineer told us.
Some floodplains are more prone to regular flooding than others. Naturally, you would expect frequent flooding in the very lowest parts of a flood-plain near the river. Higher up the plain farther from the river it might flood once every five to ten years, still higher only once every 25 to 50 years, and higher yet perhaps only once each century. When these high marks will be reached — and how frequently — is of course quite unpredictable.
But obviously, the surest way to avoid floods is to get out of a flood-plain! Yet the Army Corps of Engineers says that many people who experience frequent floods are not even aware that they are living in a floodplain!
For some, it may not be economically possible to move to another location. For many, however, it would be possible. Some cities even offer to move homes free and to pay relocation costs — but the people persist in living in the same flood-prone area.
If a person feels the benefits of living or doing business in a vulnerable area is worth the risk involved, then he should be prepared to pay the consequences when a flood comes.
It is one thing to help someone in real need. It is quite another to continually assist those who have been warned and who will not help themselves. Why, some ask, should those who are careful to live in a safe area be penalized, financially, for the stubbornness and greed of those who don't?
The Army Corps of Engineers has long urged floodplain zoning. They feel that high-risk areas in floodplains should be turned into parks or some other purpose where property damage in time of flooding would not be severe. Now, finally, some are beginning to listen.
Will Dams Solve the Problem?
Another major solution urged by some is the building of flood-control dams. But this is a tragically shortsighted solution that ignores all the lessons of history.
Dams which give temporary flood control can be built — at a tremendous price. Such dams take thousands of acres of rich bottom land out of production. Then, after a few years, they silt up. Right now there are over 2,000 dams in the U.S. which are useless impoundments of sand, gravel and silt. When a dam silts up, often the course of action is to build more dams farther up the river to relieve the pressure. This takes more precious land out of production and the vicious cycle continues.
No, dams are not the real solution to the flood problem. The great agricultural nations of old — which are useless deserts today — testify to that.
But what, then, is the solution to violent floods?
The Only Real Solution
What causes floods of the magnitude and scope described in this article? Nature does! And who controls nature? God does!
God controls everything in the universe — and that includes nature and the weather. In the world today God is allowing nature and the weather to work against man — to be man's foe instead of his friend.
But in the wonderful world tomorrow which is just around the corner, all this will be changed. God will change the weather patterns so that perfect and ideal weather will be the rule and not the exception. Our free booklet The Wonderful World Tomorrow gives a complete description of what conditions will be like in that breathtaking world.
Before that wonderful world can begin, however, man must first learn some important lessons. He must learn that he is incapable of governing himself. He must learn that he is not self-sufficient — that he needs the wisdom and help of God.
One of the first rules of learning is that you must have the student's attention. Right now man is not willing to give God his attention so that he can learn what he ought. But very shortly God is going to bring about circumstances that positively will get man's attention.
The disastrous floods of this spring ought to be taken as a warning of what is yet to come. But how many looked at it this way?
A Warning Ignored?
The spirit of cooperation which saved hundreds of millions of dollars worth of property and untold suffering was certainly commendable. But the success of these efforts can also lead to a deadly dangerous attitude.
It can make people feel proud, self-sufficient and falsely secure. It can make them feel that their own way of life is satisfactory and that there is no need to change it for something much better.
For example, one farm family that waged a hard-won battle against the flood with only the aid of two families of hired help laughed at the people in town who called on others for help. They were proud that they didn't need help from anybody.
Just because six or seven people had cooperated in sandbagging a house and in living together for several days, they told us, "This has revived our faith in human nature. Now we know we can see our way through anything."
Was the cooperation a bad thing? No. Was it bad that the house had been saved? Of course not. But the attitude they let their success breed was a tragedy. Can you imagine what it's going to take to break an outlook like that? — and it will be broken.
Experience is NOT the best teacher. Experience is often a vicious, tragic teacher. But it is the only way some will learn. Today's floods and droughts are but a very small prelude of natural disasters to come.
But why learn the hard way? You can learn the lessons you should an easier way. Write today for our free article "There is a Way of Escape." It describes how you can be protected in the tumultuous days ahead.