HEARTLAND FLOOD: Hamburg residents worry city can't weather another flood

Flood debris litters the streets of Hamburg, Iowa on Monday, April 15, 2019. City residents...
Flood debris litters the streets of Hamburg, Iowa on Monday, April 15, 2019. City residents said they are afraid the community won't survive another flood. (WOWT)
Published: Apr. 15, 2019 at 3:55 PM CDT
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Residents of Hamburg, Iowa are still trying to clean up after flooding devastated the town.

The water receded some and progress was made, but some residents are left wondering if the tiny town can survive such a blow.

On the south end of town, residents still have to drive through water that covers the streets.

"As we pump, you know, it goes down maybe six to eight inches a day. We gained quite a bit over the last couple of weeks. We've actually accessed the south end of town right now with going through about two feet of water," Alan Dovel with the City of Hamburg said.

City streets were littered with household items left wet and damaged by the flood, giving the town a different kind of feel.

Jim Burnette was evacuated when the water began to rise and said now he's worried about what the flood left behind.

"That's my biggest concern is if they don't get this, and they're working pretty hard at it today, but if they don't get all this debris up it's going to breed mold and draw vermin," he said.

"It's a little depressing. I feel mostly for people that lost everything," resident Steven Sheldon said.

He was out cleaning up things that got wet in his basement during the flood.

"We're losing our schools, lost our high school, don't have much in the way of jobs. I'd like to see it come back, but I'd like to see them bulldoze the south end of town and move us up to the bluffs, clear out of the water. I couldn't see keep investing in the same flood plain," Sheldon said.

The town is more than 160 years old and has seen floods before.

"We're going to definitely rebound. We won't quit, we're going to fight," Sheldon said.

Hamburg city officials said they are still working on a temporary well and on repairing their water plant. Residents remain under a boil order.

The Iowa Department of Transportation is helping Hamburg with hauling out debris to the Fremont County landfill.