The Red River Floods of 1997 Oral History Project: Interview with Ron Pederson and John Stumpf

Titles: The Red River Floods of 1997 Oral History Project: Interview with Ron Pederson and John Stumpf (Supplied title)

Description: BIOGRAPHICAL INFORMATION: Ron Pederson has worked at Northern States Power Company for some 35 years, and at the time of the 1997 Red River Valley flood, he was the manager of natural gas operations in North Dakota for NSP. His associate John Stumpf began working at NSP in 1980 as lineman. At the time of the flood, Stumpf was superintendent of power lines for the company. At the time of the interview, Pederson and Stumpf continued to direct gas and electrical power operations at Northern States Power. SUBJECTS DISCUSSED: Pederson and Stumpf discuss their activities in restoring electrical power and natural gas service to flooded communities. Stumpf discusses the difficulties involved in restoring electrical lines that had been brought down by a severe blizzard in early April of 1997, knocking out power for large number of communities and rural customers in the Valley. The largest part of the interview is devoted to the problems of restoring services after the flood to Grand Forks, North Dakota. Pederson discusses the problems with restoring natural gas service to homes in the community, and in replacing natural gas lines that were flooded or otherwise damaged. Stumpf describes the many steps involved in restoring electrical service. Both men also describe in detail steps taken by NSP to protect power and gas facilities during the flood and steps taken to provide greater protection in any future flooding. They describe how employees of NSP were housed and fed in Grand Forks while the flood waters were receding, and in the weeks following. They conclude the interview by discussing how the flood and the recovery efforts affected employees of Northern States Power.

Dates

• 06/30/1998 (Creation)

Creation

• interviewee: Pederson, Ronald P.
• interviewee: Stumpf, John
• interviewer: Shoptaugh, Terry L.

Identifiers

• Library Call Number: OH 57
• Accession Number: AV1999.66.24

Holding Type: Oral History - Interview

Project

• Oral History - Project, MHS Collection, project: 'The Red River Floods of 1997 Oral History Project' <OH 57>

Quantity: 1 hour sound cassette 27 pages transcript

Format

• Content Category: sound recordings
• Content Category: text

Measurements

• 55 minutes length

Subjects

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