Randy Stahl, Ronnie Hareid and Mike Marlow left Monday to help victims of flooding in the Fargo-Moorhead area.

Tuesday, June 27, 2000

Randy Stahl, Ronnie Hareid and Mike Marlow left Monday to help victims of flooding in the Fargo-Moorhead area.

Stahl, the team leader, has been there before. He spent weeks in the area in 1997, when the "flood of the millennium" struck the area.

Hareid and Marlow are making their first trip to the area stricken by flash flooding.

"We’re going to do whatever we can," Stahl said.

Salvation Army officials in the Fargo-Moorhead area called newly promoted Maj. Douglas Yeck Sunday evening with a request for help. Yeck’s answer came immediately.

"I said yes, of course," Yeck said. "Their people are all worn out, working 10- and 20-hour shifts doing relief work. The waters have subsided somewhat, but there were 20,000 homes under water and the potential for more to come."

The trio of Salvation Army Austin Corps volunteers took with them the organization’s new $55,000 mobile emergency services van.

The vehicle has seen limited use since it was acquired although it went into Olmsted, Fillmore and parts of Mower counties to aid flood victims after the late-May and early-June rainstorms.

"They are still assessing the damages in the Fargo-Moorhead area," Yeck said, "so our crew will be there this week before we make plans to return if they need us."

"What we do is get things done and make things work," Stahl said.

The Salvation Army Austin Corps assistant said that could mean helping field personnel, transportation, communications, on-site workers relief and public relations.

This week, a moving pool of water, measuring more than 20 miles wide is flowing overland in northwestern Minnesota.

Damages to homes, farms and farm crops is estimated in the millions.

The Salvation Army relief workers will attempt to assist home owners where the flood waters have receded and where cleanup efforts have begun.

"They need water, they need paper plates, plastic utensils and paper towels,. They need toothpaste and other toiletry articles. They need cleaning items, too," Yeck said.

The trio of local Salvation Army volunteers took with them high-pressure sprayers, wet-dry vacuums and electrical generators, plus other supplies used to help local flooding victims earlier this month.

For more information about helping the Salvation Army’s relief effort, call Doug or Linda Yeck at 437-4566.