Flood of 2019: Impact is still present 3 months after barriers broke
"The ground was saturated all around them barriers and they couldn't hold back the water anymore," said
Within seconds, the rushing water flowed into the space behind the barriers, devastating the auditorium. Within just minutes, Wilson and his co-workers were wading through the flooding to drag 'road closed' barriers up to Main street.
Over the course of the next hour, the water would cover
Mayor
"I got a call from Kathleen (Salisbury, city clerk). She told me it had just happened and I was just a few minutes away," McCampbell recalled.
McCampbell rushed to the riverfront, as did his fellow council members. They were on hand to meet with officials, speak with members of the media and the public, and to view the damages for themselves.
By
Several hours away and with spotty cell service, City Manager
Ferneau knew with the failure of the flood barriers, he would be needed in
"I got back into town at about 6 that night," he said.
Ferneau said the flood wasn't a 'wait until Monday' kind of problem. City leaders worked throughout the rest of the day and night trying work the problem.
In the days after the disaster, businesses on
Several businesses brought in portable restrooms to make up for their loss of facilities. The entire downtown smelled of raw sewage, a constant reminder the failed barriers.
"It's pretty bad when the air freshens by the porta potties smell better than the rest of the block,"
THREE MONTHS REMOVED
Three months after the floodwaters inundated downtown,
The Drake reopened for business after only a few days of closures. The lift station was back online within a few weeks and the porta poties soon were removed.
The parking lot between The
The Welcome Center at the
RAGBRAI riders visiting the Burlington Riverfront said they would have never guessed just a few weeks prior to their visit, water covered where they partied.
But, that doesn't mean
The people of
The auditorium also remains closed to the public. Ferneau said he's not sure how long it will take for repair the auditorium.
The facility sustained the worst damage ever from the 2019 flood. Back in the 2014 flood, the auditorium had to be redone, but not the floor. It was when the contractor were ripping up floors on the entry level they found asbestos. That added another
MONEY CONCERNS
In April, city and county were feeling the impact of the flood and local officials were looking for answer to questions about the cost of fighting the flood.
One month before the Hesco barriers failed in
That week, representatives from the offices of
"It felt good, it was nice to see that
The day after the Hescos collapsed, there was a concern
But, the help comes with a drawback. Getting help from
The work takes away from ongoing projects and forces staff to comply with the demands of
"It will take at least the next year," said Ferneau.
The one thing
To get that kind of aid, businesses must have damage to their first floor. However, most of the businesses impacted were built up to keep water off of the first floor. Businesses, and consequentially their employees, were left to pay for the damages to their property.
MOVING FORWARD
Unfortunately, Ferneau said, cleaning up after major flooding has become the same old song and dance the city has been through time and time again.
"We've done it three times since I've been here," he said.
The city has is building a permanent flood wall, indeed the flood wall held back the water. While there was some water seeping through the cracks of the wall, it held strong. It is the barriers that failed.
The city was already planning to do another stage of the flood wall next year, but MacGregor decided to move around the steps. Because the Hesco barriers seem to fail on the south side of the auditorium, that will be the next phase worked on. The work will begin next year.
In the wake of the devastation, some citizens called to tear down auditorium and port to end all the cleanup and protection efforts.
"We should just tear down everything east of
But, it seems the city is not ready to call it quits. Currently, the city is working with
The council won't know if the hotel will happen for a while. Jensen said he needs at least six months to figure out if the plan is even feasible. Jensen is planning to build the hotel up above the flood wall. This will give guests a beautiful view, but also protect the hotel from flooding.
City officials are hopeful that by the time Jensen's hotel is open, the city's flood wall will prevent any more devastation on the riverfront.
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