Flood of the Century

After a winter of monumental snows, major flooding inundated the Red River Valley of the upper Midwest and Canada. In response, KFGO activated its emergency broadcast procedures, becoming a critical life-line to the Red River Valley. During the crisis the staff, under the direction of news director Paul Jurgens, maintained round-the-clock coverage. When thousands of residents lost electricity in an early spring blizzard, and many hundreds lost their homes in the subsequent floods, producer Tina Rene and reporters/writers Don Haney, Bonnie Amistadi, Doug Hamilton, Gary Rogers, Sandy Buttweiler, and Ed Schultz kept listeners informed. When other stations were knocked off the air, and usual sources of information were silenced, KFGO worked with hospitals, emergency agencies, and law enforcement officials to provide crucial information and vital updates to a vast 72-county listening area, stretching across the Dakotas, Minnesota, and Southern Manitoba. For comprehensive, extensive and indispensable news coverage in a time of crisis, with significant impact on many communities, a Peabody to KFGO Radio for Flood of the Century.