April 6, 1998 - The mayor who led Grand Forks through last years flooding offered sympathy and encouragement to tornado victims in St. Peter Sunday. Minnesota Public Radio's Mary Losure reports. and vividly described the disaster that struck HER community almost year ago, when the dikes protecting GRand Forks began to give way.
April 6, 1998 - Gustavus Adolphus College alumni and students spent the weekend cleaning up the destruction from last week's tornado. The tornado damaged many of the college's buildings and has forced an extension of the college's spring break. But it didn't keep people from breaking out the "gustie spirit" to help the college begin the process of recovery. Minnesota Public Radio's Lynette Nyman has this report. 31:00 ambience of crowd
April 6, 1998 - Minnesota's House of Representatives has approved more than $27 million dollars worth of tornado relief aid to communities in south central counties. Minnesota Public Radio's Eric Jansen reports from the state capitol: Representatives acted swiftly and unanimously today in appropriating $27.6 million to help communities in south central Minnesota rebuild from tornado damage sustained 8 days ago. $8 million of that aid package will qualify five counties to draw approximately $24 million more from the federal government. St. Peter Representative Ruth Johnson says that although residents are carrying on the Minnesota tradition of doing what needs to be done, there is a lot of work ahead:
April 7, 1998 - MPR's Mary Losure talked to kids at an afterschool daycare program for a child's eye view of the severe storm and tornado that hit St. Peter, Minnesota.
April 9, 1998 - Tom Gravelin, a cafe owner in St. Peter, shares his experience during and after a tornado hit the Minnesota town.
April 13, 1998 - Farmers around Comfrey and LeCenter are asking for volunteers to help clear their fields of tornado debris so they can begin their spring planting. Bill Free-DELL of Lutheran Social Service says the weather delayed an immediate clean-up: Bill Fredell is with Lutheran Social Services. There are buses providing round-trips from the Twin Cities. Sun 28-MAY 11:37:29 MPR NewsPro Archive - Wed 04/11/2001
April 13, 1998 - It will be another week before students at Gustavus Adolphus College in Saint Peter return to classes on their tornado-ravaged campus. Officials had hoped to reopen the college today, but delays in debris cleanup and restoring power pushed that back a week. The small Lutheran college faces a long and expensive rebuilding process. But the money's pouring in and administrators are confident they'll emerge from the debris even better than before. Minnesota Public Radio's Tim Pugmire reports... (Sound of bobcat) In a parking lot at Gustavus Adolphus College, workers take a break from hauling debris to unload a semi-trailer full of donated trees. The tornado stripped the campus almost bare of its large mature trees. Campus Gardener Bil
April 14, 1998 - Hundreds of volunteers are picking up tornado debris from southern Minnesota farm fields this week as a new phase of the cleanup from the March 29th tornadoes begins. Its estimated more than 400 farms were damaged by the storms. Mainstreet Radio's Mark Steil went along as volunteers cleaned fields near New Ulm yesterday: :04 (Okay if I could have everybody's attention!) Duane Laffrenzen stands in the front of a school bus parked at the New Ulm High School. The seats are filled by 50 volunteers from New Ulm, Fairmont, Minneapolis, Mapleton, and Renville.
April 15, 1998 - As part of the series Remembering and Rebuilding - The Great Flood of 1997, a special Mainstreet Radio program from East Grand Forks, one year after the flood. Host Rachel Reabe interviews Pat Owens, Grand Forks mayor; Lynn Stauss, East Grand Forks mayor; Cliff Barth, Breckenridge mayor; and Morris Lanning of the Red River Basin Coalition about how people of the Red River Valley are putting their lives and their communities back together.
April 15, 1998 - As part of the series Remembering and Rebuilding - The Great Flood of 1997, a special Mainstreet Radio program from East Grand Forks, one year after the flood. Host Rachel Reabe interviews several business people and families who were affected by the flood…some who rebuilt, and some who moved away.