Pine Island residents didn’t think flooding would happen again

Jun. 28--PINE ISLAND -- On Lillie Lane, Kim Wendt and her siblings made sure everything was at least six inches off the carpets, something they had to do in 2010, too. But this time, Wendy said, the flooding was nowhere near as bad as 2010.

By 1:30 p.m. Friday, the rising water had reached the home's foundation, and crews had already been through to put plastic on a glass door and sandbag the front of it.

"It's been nine years," Wendt said. "We didn't think it would happen again."

The Middle Fork Zumbro River, which flows from Pine Island toward Oronoco, runs parallel to U.S. Highway 52 on the west side. On Friday, it escaped its banks and ran across the highway, closing the road to traffic in both directions.

After the 500-year flood in 2010, Wendt said they had to replace everything from the floor to four feet above it. They also were required to get flood insurance on their mother's home, Karen Greenslade said.

Down the road, Jamie Dessner and her neighbors were playing the waiting game. Their glass doors had also been covered in plastic and sandbagged.

Dessner and her family have lived in the home for about 5 years. She said the water has risen before, but it's never been this high since I've lived there.

At 1 p.m., the water hadn't made it into their basement, but it had already claimed their wood swing set and possibly their part of their chain link fence.

When I woke up there was no water. It was in the river," Dessner said. "Within 30 minutes, our yard was full."

Initial anxiety has been high, but Pine Island Fire Chief Brandon Sather said the water level was nowhere near as high as it was in 2010.

Sitting in a UTV on First Avenue Southeast a few houses down from where it turns into Lillie Lane, Sather said that during the 2010 flood, the area would have been underwater.

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