Fargo, n.d.–Residents of North Dakota, home of Bobcat Company, prepared for major flooding in the eastern part of the state and battled flood conditions in the west and central areas in late March.
The Fargo (N.D.)/Moorhead (Minn.) area, which is home to the company’s world headquarters, worked 24 hours a day through the week of March 23 to fill more than 3.5 million sandbags and build extensive flood walls to protect the communities in anticipation of a record flooding of the Red River.
Early Saturday, March 28, the Red River hit a record stage of 40.82 feet, slowly descending since then.
Efforts then switched from fighting the flood to monitoring the river and returning the communities back to normal.
In response to the flood threat in the Fargo area, more than 100 Bobcat employees volunteered around the clock to help fill and place sandbags, build flood walls along the water’s edges, provide meals and answer phones at the volunteer center.
Bobcat’s donation of more than 40 machines and 40 volunteer operators helped accelerate National Guard efforts to efficiently fill a portable floodwall system throughout the city. Management at Bobcat recognized the need for volunteers, especially operators, and encouraged all employees to leave their positions last week to help with the protection efforts.
Bobcat dealers around North Dakota stepped up to help their communities as well by supplying equipment and resources toward flood fighting. Another reason Bobcat equipment was highly visible in the Fargo-Moorhead areas was that many customers were both working and volunteering their time and equipment to help protect the communities.