Decorah Mayor Don Arendt thanks those who helped with the response to August 24th's flooding

(Decorah Mayor Don Arendt has released the following statement in response to the August 24th flooding):

"I am proud of the quick response and teamwork within all city departments.  This includes the Fire Department, fire volunteers, Police Department, Streets, Waste Water, Water, Parks and Recreation, Library and administrative staff.  Some of them went to work even though they had significant water problems in their own homes.

The primary concern during an emergency is the protection and safety of our citizens.  Our staff were out in the middle of the night, providing assistance.

The Emergency Operations Center was opened at 6:00 a.m. on Wednesday, August 24th.  I was impressed with the new Emergency Management Director, Sean Snyder, who provided leadership in the EOC and assistance with multiple disaster responses in the county.  He also deserves our appreciation and thanks.

The volunteers, RSVP, Luther students and others who provided assistance in sandbagging, telephone answering and cleanup, (helped us).  Volunteers make our community great.

The assistance and support of the Salvation Army and Red Cross also relieved some of the human stress.

(I'd also like to thank) Brysaas Sales, Krauskoff and Bodensteiner Implement, which provided manure pumps and tractors to the flood effort.

Many others helped--they also deserve a Thank You from the city.

We will be reviewing and evaluating our emergency operations so we can continue to respond quickly to emergencies.