CDM Smith

Scope Of Work

Originally a railroad boomtown founded in 1886 and dubbed “the Magic City” for springing up virtually overnight, Minot is known today as a central hub of the region’s oil economy. After a 1969 flood damaged several control structures in the area, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) implemented a flood control project to protect the Souris River from future damage. But on June 22, 2011, following a spring of heavy snowmelt and record levels of precipitation, Minot faced one of the most severe flooding events in recent U.S. history when the Souris exceeded the 500-year flood elevation and overflowed its banks. Damage to the city included 4,100 flooded properties, 3,100 destroyed homes, and over 12,000 displaced residents, totaling over $600 million in loss and damage. 

Following the disaster, city and community leaders knew their plans to recover and avoid future impacts needed to go well beyond traditional methods of fighting floods. “The more proactive you can be, the less reactive you will need to be,” explains Michael Schmidt, CDM Smith senior vice president and technical strategy leader for water resources. “The Minot community knows that long-term solutions have to create long-lasting changes throughout the city, or they’ll face these impacts again.”