Dave Kolpack, Associated Press
The Associated Press September 23, 2010 04:00 AM Copyright The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
Thursday, September 23, 2010
Devils Lake keeps getting larger because it has no natural river or stream to carry away excess rain and snowmelt. Now it has climbed within 6 feet of overflowing, raising fears that some downstream communities could be washed away if the water level isn't reduced.
"It's a slow-moving torture," said 72-year-old Joe Belford, a lifelong resident of Devils Lake and a county commissioner who spends most of his time seeking a way to control the flooding and money to pay for it.
No other place in America has faced such a dilemma.
"We're unfortunately or fortunately - I don't know what it is - pretty unique," said Dick Johnson, mayor of Devils Lake, which has nearly 7,000 residents. The flooding "doesn't have the immediate impact that a hurricane or typhoon might have, but it's devastating."
Since the water began rising in the 1990s, more than 400 homes around the lake have been relocated or destroyed.
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