News Releases for August 2004
August 11, 2004
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Hoeven: Fema To Take Lead On Roads As Dikes In Devils Lake
Plan To Address Roads As Dikes, Meeting Scheduled In Two Weeks
BISMARCK, N.D. - Gov. John Hoeven today announced that FEMA has agreed to be the lead agency in addressing the issue of "roads acting as dikes" in the Devils Lake area. Hoeven, the state's congressional delegation and Spirit Lake Nation Tribal Chairman Tino White pushed the issue at a teleconference meeting of state, federal and tribal agencies today regarding the roads as dikes.
North Dakota Department of Transportation Director Dave Sprynczynatyk worked with David Fukutomi, special assistant to Under Secretary Mike Brown of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), to arrange the teleconference, which included FEMA, the Army Corps of Engineers (USACE), Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA), N.D. Department of Transportation (NDDOT), N.D. Division of Emergency Management (DEM) and the N.D. State Water Commission.
"We are faced by challenges in the Devils Lake area, and we need to respond together to protect citizens threatened by flooding problems," Hoeven said.
As a result of the meeting, Fukutomi agreed to FEMA taking the lead to coordinate federal and state agency efforts to find a solution to the "roads acting as dikes" problem. At the same time, FHWA, because of its past work with this issue, is best suited to lead a technical response.
"It's important that we have a lead agency, because in the past, federal agency response efforts to Devils Lake problems have been subject to questions of authority and funding, which have hindered assistance," Hoeven said.
The NDDOT, in cooperation with the Federal Highway Administration, developed a plan addressing the "roads acting as dikes" issue, which prioritizes projects on the basis of risk analysis, beginning with the most critical first. According to Sprynczynatyk, there are eight to nine miles of state highways and BIA roads in the Devils Lake area and on the Spirit Lake Nation Indian Reservation protecting homes, property and critical infrastructure from rising Devils Lake waters. These roads were not designed to provide such protection, but should they fail to hold back floodwaters, lives, homes, infrastructure and property are at risk.
The agencies, including FEMA, the Federal Highway Administration, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the Bureau of Indian Affairs, agreed to meet in North Dakota within the next two weeks to move the funding and the work plan forward.
"If these roads acting as dikes failed today, Devils Lake water would flood 50 homes and 5,000 acres of land," Sprynczynatyk said. "As Devils Lake continues to rise, we've identified up to 120 structures and 8,000 acres of land that could be inundated."
On June 23, 2004, Governor Hoeven issued an executive order declaring a flood transportation emergency for Benson and Ramsey counties on the shores of Devils Lake.
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