U.S. Forest Service officials are expected to announce soon whether they'll allow further use of chainsaws and low-flying aircraft in the storm damaged Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness. Both have been authorized during the initial search and rescue effort in the area, but sawyer crews have nearly completed their exploration of tree-choked portages.
Meanwhile, investigators with the Federal Emergency Management Agency have begun their assessment of damage outside the BWCAW, with visits to washed-out bridges and flooded homes around Northeast Minnesota.
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AMY RADIL: Forest service officials have been meeting in Milwaukee this week to decide whether the massive blow down of trees in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness merits further use of chainsaws to clear trails and campsites. They're also deciding whether low-flying planes should be allowed to deliver crews to the storm-damaged area.
Normally, the noisy motorized devices are forbidden in the wilderness, but a dispensation was given for their use after the July 4th storm in order to reach any stranded campers. Minnesota Interagency Fire Center spokesperson, Ron Sarno, says officials are now deliberating on how to proceed.
RON SARNO: Some of the factors that they're taking into consideration would be, number one, as I said, safety to the user is paramount, and that'd be the visitor, then safety to the individuals who are doing the work.
These trees that are out there that are down are extremely dangerous to be cutting on because of the way they're twisted, the way they're bent, the way they have other trees leaning on them.
AMY RADIL: The agency must decide soon because the search and rescue effort is nearly completed. The Forest Service says 88% of the portages in the storm-damaged area are currently passable. About 160 people are at work clearing the trails and campsites mostly on sawyer crews. Sarno says the crews are going in, usually with an eight-day assignment ahead of them.
RON SARNO: We're taking them in, dropping them off with float planes. They're being resupplied by float planes. Most of them are being taken in, dropped off with an assignment, and they work their way out to civilization, you might say.
AMY RADIL: The developed part of Northeast Minnesota is still dealing with storm fallout to. About 40 roads in the Arrowhead are closed at some point and awaiting repair. The Red Cross and Salvation Army say they have about 300 requests for aid and so far counted 72 homes sustaining major damage in the flood.
Tuesday, officials with the Federal Emergency Management Agency arrived in Grand Rapids and began their tour to assess damage to public and private property. That assessment will be submitted to the state, which will likely request a federal disaster declaration.
Minnesota can only receive federal help if President Clinton makes such a declaration. The state director of Emergency Management, Kevin Loehr, says the first threshold for federal aid is whether there's been damage amounting to $1 per capita statewide.
KEVIN LOEHR: We believe that we've clearly met and exceeded that threshold. But the second and probably the most important threshold is the economic impact to the area. And can they recover independently, or do they need assistance from the federal government? And that's the more complicated piece that needs to be articulated and put together in the declaration request.
AMY RADIL: Loehr says FEMA may be able to help fund replacement of roads, bridges, and sewers, which are expected to cost about $19 million. The agency also assists people with uninsured damage to their homes. Loehr says federal aid may also help tourist-dependent businesses in Northeast Minnesota survive a potentially lean year.
KEVIN LOEHR: The impact to businesses, once we have a presidential disaster declaration, there are a variety of programs through the Small Business Administration that come in there. Most of the programs deal with debt restructuring, low interest loans, and a lot of that type of activity to try to keep the solvency of the business in place.
AMY RADIL: Loehr says the state is also committed to repairing the recreation areas that draw people to Northeast Minnesota, such as parks and trails. And tourism officials have taken pains to point out many resorts have survived the storm and are open for business. Jennifer Walsh is the General Manager at the Gunflint Lodge near Grand Marais.
JENNIFER WALSH: When it hit on the 4th, that pretty well shut us down for that following week. We spent that week literally clearing our roadways, hoping to get electricity back, which we did get back on Wednesday evening, the 7th. We had some damage to buildings, but nothing major, some roofs, some eaves.
AMY RADIL: Walsh says their lodge was one of the lucky ones with no major damage from falling trees, and with power and phone service restored fairly quickly. Other resorts have reopened using generators for power. The Department of Public Safety says utilities may need up to three weeks to restore power all along the Gunflint trail. Walsh says she's seen extensive damage.
JENNIFER WALSH: I understand through the grapevine that on any given year, they have to replace two, three, four power poles. We're now looking at literally in the hundreds of power poles that were literally snapped by the wind. And then beyond the power poles, there's just so many lines were brought down by trees.
AMY RADIL: Arrowhead Electric reports 232 power lines downed by the storm, affecting about 40,000 customers in Lake County. Minnesota Congressman Jim Oberstar says federal help will be needed to restore the power lines. FEMA will report its own hard numbers on damage assessment Friday. In Duluth, I'm Amy Radil, Minnesota Public Radio.