Release Date:
April 19, 2022
Below are figures that encapsulate the impact of the 1997 flood in Grand Forks.
- Red River crested at 54.35 feet. Earthen levees in place could protect to a level of 52 feet (49 feet for levee + 3 feet of freeboard)
- Water rise was 1 inch/hour (2 feet/day) during flooding
- 3.5 million sandbags (17,500 tons of sand) plus 170,000 cubic yards of clay and 20,000 cubic yards of gravel used to fight the flood
- 90 percent of Grand Forks’ 52,500 residents evacuated
83 percent (9,001) of Grand Forks homes and 62 percent (751) of the city’s commercial units damaged - All 385 businesses in downtown Grand Forks impacted (400,000 sq. ft of space)
- 11 historic buildings and 60 apartments burned
- No water for 13 days; no drinkable water for 23 days
- More than $74 million damage to Grand Forks Public School District (16 of 22 schools significantly damaged)
- More than $48 million damage to University of North Dakota (72 state-owned buildings)
- More than 20,000 volunteers came to the community to help clean up and rebuild
- 60,000 tons of flood debris hauled to landfill