(Top and second rows)
St. Paul Composite Squadron members help fill sandbags.
(Third row)
The St. Paul Composite contingent pauses to pose for a photo in Fargo.
(Bottom row)
The scene inside the Fargo Dome.
Editor's note: The St. Paul Composite Squadron's emergency services officer, 1st Lt. Paul Markegard, provided the following first-person account of the squadron's involvement in the fight against flooding in Fargo, N.D.
1st Lt. Paul Markegard
Emergency Services Officer
St. Paul Composite Squadron
Minnesota Wing
MINNESOTA -- Members of the St. Paul Composite Squadron have again answered the call -- this time in Fargo, N.D., where the Red River is 22 feet above flood stage and threatening numerous houses and businesses.
A call for help went out to all Civil Air Patrol units in Minnesota to assist with everything from sandbagging and dike building to aerial photography. The St. Paul squadron responded the night of March 25 with a team of seven.
Loaded with gear, we launched into the winter night bound for Fargo. Some 4 ½ hours later, around midnight, we rolled into mission base ready to work.
We were sent to the Fargo Dome, where we were told to help fill sandbags. Unfortunately, the sand could not be supplied fast enough, and after an hour it was apparent we would be of little use under the circumstances. We decided to get some sleep and start up first thing in the morning.
After a two-hour nap, we were back at mission base, where we helped shovel snow before being assigned to help with sandbagging in the northern end of Fargo.
Upon arrival, we grabbed some shovels and started to fill bags from a pile of sand. I have no idea how many we filled – perhaps hundreds.
The cadets were outstanding. Some were filling and tying off bags, while others were in the line moving bags from the street into backyards to build walls against floodwaters.
As I moved about checking on my cadets, many times I received compliments how how hard and how well they were working. Those guys are really what makes CAP stand out.
We worked the area until late afternoon, then headed back to mission base. Though the National Guard had road blocks set up, they waved us through. Maybe the uniforms helped.
We were planning to return to the dorms we were staying in for rest and dinner, but a call came in to base requesting as many people as were available to build a secondary wall to help shore up one that was starting to collapse.
I asked our team if we could do it. No one said, "No.” Neither did they say, "Yes, we can" … but they did not say "no".
I knew we were tired, but the residents needed our help. A total of 19 CAP members from both Minnesota and North Dakota rolled out.
We worked hard and fast to build the wall -- under a deck, no less.
After a 12-hour day working on about two hours of sleep, we were sent back to recover, rest and get some chow. We never made it back, as the the decision to terminate ground operations was made about 10:30 p.m.
We were loaded up in our trucks and bound for home by 11:30 p.m., arriving back at St. Paul about 4 a.m.
This was a missions of nonstop work. The cadets really stepped up to the challenge.
Nothing was easy about this one -- from the four-hour ride stuck in the back of a truck to lifting 40-pound or heavier bags of sand. It was cold and snowing, and the wind picked up as the sun set.
No one complained, though. In fact, the only complaining I heard was when we told there was nothing to do. The cadets worked and worked and worked. They all did a fantastic job.
Thanks again to all who jumped up to help. It was no easy task, but you all did what was asked of you and you did it well.