Emergency response team activated to help with Minidoka County flooding
Freezing temperatures are providing temporary relief for people facing flooding issues in Minidoka County.
Officials say the recent flooding has caused $2 million in damage to roads and in labor costs. That number does not include private property damage or possession loss. Crews are currently working to pump water from areas impacted by flood waters.
The newly created “Type III” incident command team” for east Idaho just returned from Minidoka County after assessing the damage and developing a plan of action. The team expects the county to be dealing with issues for 3-5 years.
“There are roads that are completely under the water,” said Kerry Hammon, public information officer for the team. “You can’t even see them. The fields. There are some areas that were six feet deep.”
The Type III team is made up of first responders, emergency operation managers and public health officials. Those on the team spent three days in the county. They expect more flooding to occur when the temperatures rise above freezing.
“As soon as it warms up, which is expected to warm up Thursday through Saturday, we could be reactivated again if flooding becomes a big issues once again,” Hammon said.
The Minidoka County Sheriff’s Office has 10,000 filled sandbags ready to be deployed and another 90,000 read to be filled.
Dairies throughout Minidoka County are also being hit. The Type III team says farmers are having a hard time getting milk trucked out because so many roads are gone.
