Media Contact: Julie Christensen, U of M Extension, (612) 626-4077, reuve007@umn.edu

U of M Extension announces flood-related web, phone resources

ST. PAUL, Minn. (8/21/2007)-- University of Minnesota Extension announced today its coordinated system of online and phone answer resources available for those with flood-related questions, both during a flood emergency and while cleanup efforts are underway.

A storm system that parked over southeastern Minnesota dumped 6 to 8 inches of rain on Saturday, with some areas receiving as much as a foot, according to the National Weather Service. One observer in Winona County reported 17 inches Saturday into Sunday. Governor Tim Pawlenty declared a state of emergency in six counties: Winona, Wabasha, Fillmore, Houston, Steele and Olmsted. Six deaths were reported in the region.

The toll free phone services and Extension’s flood impacts website, www.extension.umn.edu, click on “Flood and Rain,” connect Minnesotans to the most up-to-date information on flood response, safety and cleanup issues. Two of the phone services, the Farm Information Line and the AnswerLine, can also refer callers to appropriate state and federal agencies if additional information is needed.

“Extension's role during situations like a flood is to help provide practical and useful research-based information that people can trust,” said Bev Durgan, dean of Extension. “There are many state and local agencies responding to the floods and our staff work with them to provide information via our website, news media stories and our phone answer lines.”

The Farm Information Line (800-232-9077), staffed by Extension personnel Monday through Friday from 8:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m., is a resource for questions about water, crops, horticulture and climatology issues. Questions at other times of the day and on weekends can be left on voice mail and will be returned during staffed hours. In addition, questions can be e-mailed to the Farm Information Line at fil@umn.edu, and a written response will be returned.

Extension’s AnswerLine (800-854-1678), which can provide answers to household and family oriented questions, is staffed Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to noon and 1 to 4 p.m.

Another resource from Extension, Info-U (800-525-UofM) provides callers with recorded messages on various flood-related topics 24 hours a day, seven days a week, using a touch-tone phone. Callers follow voice instructions to make their selections.

If callers are unsure about which answer service to contact, they should first call the Farm Information Line (800-232-9077), and Extension personnel will help direct them.

A one-stop online resource, the Extension flood website was reactivated on Aug. 20.

NOTE: News releases were current as of the date of issue. If you have a question on older releases, use the news release search (upper left-hand column of the News main page) or the main Extension search (upper right of this page) to locate more recent information.

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URL: http:// www.extension.umn.edu/extensionnews/2005/2007floodresources.html This page was updated Aug. 23, 2007 .
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