Around the State: August 28, 2023

The counties and cities within the state of North Dakota hold many interesting news stories.

Here are just a few of the feature stories that others are reading in communities around the state.

Shelter from the storm

Some have been dreaming of storm shelters at Golden Lake for many years, and now due to the diligent work of many, including Steele County Emergency Director Ben Gates and Steel County Sheriff Wayne Beckman, those dreams were turned into a reality this summer.

Gates explained that the storm shelters are part of a hazard mitigation grant that they received from FEMA through the N.D. Department of Emergency Services (NDDES).

“It’s been a 7-year process and we finally got the approval in late 2021, ordered the shelters in early 2022, and they were just delivered in May/June 2023. The total cost of the grant was $172,000, explained Gates.

“We have had a lot of close calls in that area,” said Beckman.

“It’s such a relief to have those out there.”

(Story by Lisa Saxberg, the Steele County Press)

Local vandalism damages property

Watford City had an unprecedented number of vandalism cases during the first weekend of August.

Many business owners arrived to work recently to find their businesses “tagged,” meaning vandalized by spray paint.

Watford City Police Chief Jesse Wellen said, “We have had approximately 21 cases of vandalism reported; 18 of these reports are similar in nature.”

Records show that between August 4-8, there were nearly as many police reports filed as happened annually the last two years.

Before August 1, there have been a total of 29 police reports filed in 2023. The two highest months were March, with seven incidents and June, which had nine.

(Story by Kristen Jones, the McKenzie County Farmer)

Hawaiian family shocked by Maui fires

The devastation wrought by wild-fires on the Hawaiian island of Maui is being felt in Divide County.

“We have a lot of friends and family there,” said Jonathan Kauhako, owner of Crosby’s Hindsite Creations.

“My heart hurts,” said Marie Kauhako, wiping away a tear. “Like the song says, its not something you get over, it’s something you get through.”

“It’s so hard because we’re so far away,” she continued. “Bear with me. It’s like talking about an obituary.”

As of August 11, fires on Maui’s northwest side have claimed more than 1000 structures, displaced hundreds of residents and forced thousands of tourists to go elsewhere. Damage is especially bad in historic Hahaina, so bad that Hawaii Governor Josh Green told The Associated Press, “Lahaina, with a few rare exceptions, has been burned down.”

According to the National Weather Service, wildfires fueled by unseasonably dry weather were spread by wind gusts topping 80 miles per hour as Hurricane Dora passed south of the island chain.

Lahaina, once the capitol of Hawaii under King Kamehameha, is a place the Kauhakos know well. Marie’s later father, George was born and raised in the former capital and historic whaling port.

“My cousin Crystal, she works in Lahaina, but now she doesn’t have a job because her employment is gone,” said Jonathan.

As of Monday, other family members were still unaccounted for. Those family members, Marie said, were trying to reach another part of the island by boat on Thursday, August 10.

“We’re praying that they’re on another island,” she said.

(Story by Brad Nygaard, the Tioga Tribune)

Dakota experts working to compile dictionary, foster growth in language use

Marva Tollefson is bringing together elders of the Spirit Lake Nation to revive the dwindling number of Dakota speakers on the Spirit Lake Reservation. Bringing back a language on the brink of extinction is no small task.

These devoted individuals have met four times and plan to meet six more times in hopes of accumulating enough language through the combined fluent speakers of Spirit Lake to compile a Dakota dictionary.

The people who attended this meeting, previous meetings and future meetings have two goals that will only help the people and future generations of Spirit Lake. The first goal is to educate people and bring new growth in the numbers of those who speak the waning Dakota language and create a Dakota dictionary to help foster the growth and learning of the Dakota people.

(Story by Lottie Caldwell, the Benson County Farmers Press)

Essentia Health to open clinic in Lisbon

Essentia Health is excited to announce that on Monday, August 28, our new clinic will open in downtown Lisbon.

The 6,000-square-foot clinic is three times the size of the existing facility and includes nine exam rooms (all of which will be telehealth-capable), one procedure room, increased office space and an expansion of lab and radiology services. The larger clinic provides room for an additional family medicine physician and equipment upgrades, allowing us to better meeting the needs of the local community.

(Story taken from the Ransom County Gazette)

The Liq’r Pigz raising $200,000 since 2004

“I’ve always said we are a good club, with good people, with a bad name,” Joked Tom Jacobson, president of the Liq’r Pigz Motorcycle Club, based out of Elliot.

The leathers, saddlebags, boots and vests may make the club come off as an appearance of a “tough crowd” with a negative connotation, but don’t let the looks or the name make you think that they are. This group of bikers works hard to help people in tough situations and the community at large.

The Liq’r Pigz is a unique group of riders that come together in 2004 to ride and discuss motorcycles. At first, it was a small group of family and friends, but it would grow from there. The group didn’t have a place to meet, so they found themselves meeting at local watering holes.

The Liq’r Pigz have worked hard to help individuals and organizations throughout their community. They have sponsored and hosted individual benefits for those in need medically or otherwise, and have created several special annual events that have become a staple in the area.

(Story by Mattie Richardson-Schmitz, the Ransom County Gazette)