Flood Waters in Pierre and Fort Pierre

Our upcoming Sept/Oct issue features stories from the long rise of the Missouri River. Editor Bernie Hunhoff took these photos of the Pierre/Fort Pierre area.

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Sandbags have lined both sides of Pierre's main street all summer long, but as it turned out the water boiled up from underneath, causing damage to the stores' basements.
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Many people described the twin cities of Pierre and Fort Pierre as looking like a war zone because of the frantic activity, the uniformed guardsmen who rushed to help and the deserted houses.
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Many National Guard troops began their flood relief work in Pierre and Fort Pierre and then moved south, with the water, to help downstream communities.
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A stretch of homes on Frontier Road have been badly damaged by the high waters of the Missouri. Frontier Road lies between Fort Pierre and the Oahe Dam.
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When a homeowner erected his walleye mailbox on Frontier Road years ago, he never could have imagined that it would someday be in the water.
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Curt Mortenson has lived for decades along Frontier Road. Now he jokingly calls it "Frontier River."
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This "For Sail" sign is a joke, but homeowners are wondering whether they'll ever be able to actually sell their property for its former value. And others are wondering if property tax assessments for riverfront properties won't have to be reconsidered.
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Several dozen homes were located along Frontier Road, but this is one of the very few that stayed dry. Berms kept most of the homes in Pierre and Fort Pierre from being flooded by surface water, but the elevated groundwater inundated many basements and yards.