Waterville, Minn. residents battle historic flooding

WATERVILLE, Minn. (FOX 9) - An hour south of Minneapolis, Mother Nature has declared war on the city of Waterville.

On all sides of Christa Wolner’s home on the north edge of town, the sound of generators and pumps has taken over.  The smell of dirty water is overwhelming home basements.

Along the lake, sleep-deprived homeowners are making their final stand.

"I’ve never seen anything like this before. It’s a scary time," homeowner Christa Wolner told FOX 9. "If Mother Nature can just stop give us a break. That’s all we need right now… I’m exhausted, we’re taking shifts because we have to be watching our pumps every two hours."

The Wolner family has four water pumps working around the clock and a wall of sandbags along the backside of their house.

City administrators say 1,000 volunteers have already filled and distributed 60,000 sandbags, and there have been talks about bringing in the National Guard.

They have no idea when the water will stop rising, but do not expect that to happen anytime in the next couple of days.

"This is by all accounts the largest flooding event that Waterville has experienced," Le Seuer County Commissioner David Preisler said.

Senators Amy Klobuchar and Tina Smith were in town on Sunday to survey damage. They say they will work to get federal assistance for the town’s recovery.

"People are coming together, are going to stay strong and keep fighting the good fight," Waterville Police Chief John Manning finished.