Man Who Lives Near the Sheyenne River Shares Nearly 60 Years of Flood Stories

Wally Nelson captures his flood experiences in photo albums and says the 1975 flood was the worst

HARWOOD, N.D. – Wally Nelson is no stranger to flood season.

He has lived in his Harwood home near the Sheyenne River since 1960.

Wally says the flood of 1975 was by far the worst.

“Terrible,” Nelson said. “Terrible, yeah. Most people weren’t prepared for it the way it came that deep at one time.”

His flood experiences, which are captured in photo albums, are what keep him prepared for the next flood.

Wally has between eight and ten sump pumps on his property and three more ready for back up.

“If you don’t have them running it’s too late then,” Nelson said.

He has noticed the river levels in front of his house rising significantly since Tuesday.

This time around, he’s focusing on sandbagging and making sure those pumps are in working order.

When thinking back to previous floods..

“We sandbagged about three feet, two to three feet high all the way around the whole thing,” Nelson said. “When you start carrying thousands of sandbags, it gets old fast.”

But he assures he wouldn’t move just because of flooding.

“The benefits of being in the country and having great neighbors supersedes the two weeks of flood time,” Nelson said.

He also assures that flood protection can’t be done without the help of neighbors.

“If you help somebody, you get help back,” Nelson said. “Our neighborhood has been really good that way.”

KVRR is planning to check back in with Wally to see how the 2019 flood season is shaping up for his property near the Sheyenne River.