Ellendale flood relief work continues

Oct. 16--Funds are now available to assist homeowners who incurred severe damage as a result of a July flood in Ellendale.

Approximately 6 to 8 inches of rain fell on Ellendale in a 24-hour period on July 19, said Charlie Russell, Dickey County emergency manager. The deluge of runoff caused damage to homes that went above and beyond the typical home insurance claim allowed for such damage, he said.

"With winter coming on we need to raise enough money to at least guarantee heat in these homes," Russell said. "The priorities obviously will be heat and trying to take care of furnaces first."

Around 28 homes were damaged in the flood and around one-third of them are requesting assistance of some kind, said Cari Logan, humanitarian and special projects team lead with Lutheran Disaster Response in Fargo. Not everybody who was impacted has requested additional assistance and there are some who have had to find other living arrangements, she said.

"Some people received insurance money that was since paid out and some have made decisions not to do complete repairs and some have made different decisions around that," she said. "We are still working on exact numbers as far as what people's plans are and what they would hope for as far as build and repair and what is going to be possible."

Around $100,000 of documented damage has been established and so far around $34,000 in cash has been raised through the National Voluntary Organizations Active in Disaster, a network of foundations and corporations that help identify grants and assistance for unmet disaster response, she said.

The regular response partners include Catholic Charities, United Church of Christ and Lutheran Disaster Response, Logan said. The three organizations work with a local Ellendale leadership team that determined eligibility based largely on income level, damage, need and vulnerability, she said.

"We will be allocating the initial amount," Logan said. "There will be an ongoing effort to revisit additional cases as money comes in and as we find more resources."

Some residents have moved from a damaged home, she said. Funds will be distributed with a recommendation but the decision on how to use the assistance is ultimately with the homeowner, she said.

Ellendale Mayor Matt Thorpe said the city did not incur any infrastructure damage from the flood. The city's insurance company did not identify any liability with the residential damage but the process is ongoing, he said.

"We are still working on it," Thorpe said. "It takes time."

A dinner to support the Ellendale Flood Relief Fund will be at the Ellendale School from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 28, Russell said. The dinner is to raise additional funds to help reach the $100,000 goal to cover all damage that isn't raised through the VOAD, he said.

There is currently around $2,100 in the Ellendale Flood Relief Fund, Russell said. Many people lost appliances such as hot water heaters, washers, dryers and furnaces to the flood and the funds will go to offset the costs of replacing items as well as repairing structures, he said.

Tax deductible donations to the Ellendale Flood Relief Fund can also be made to the North Dakota Community Foundation at ndcf.net/give/urgent-needs.html or mail to P.O. Box 387 Bismarck, ND 58502, or by calling (701) 222-8349.

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