As flood waters recede, the real work begins

As the sun began to set over the Sierra Sunday, Fernley mayor Todd Cutler prepared for his second sleepless night.

Sunday night, instead of making sure folks are rescued from their flooded homes, had food to eat and warm, dry shelter - Cutler turned his focus to the next phase of his civic duty - recovery.

Reached via cell phone at 4 p.m. Sunday, Cutler was just sitting down to talk to Federal Emergency Management Agency officials to begin the long process of tallying the damage to some 400 homes and seeing what, if any, federal aid might be coming to help the estimated 1,500-plus residents affected by the flood.

"You know, it's too early to say any specifics, that's what we're doing now," Cutler said when asked about what dollar amount might best reflect the damage that has occurred over the last 36 hours. "That's one of the things we're doing; we're also going to see what kind of assistance we can get."

Working swiftly seems to be a reoccurring theme of those involved with the flood.

Less than four hours before meeting with federal officials, Cutler and emergency crews dispatched from throughout the region still were working to mitigate the levee break that occurred just after 4 a.m. Saturday.

By the afternoon, the water had receded from almost the entire flood footprint, officials said.

"We still have some water in a few areas," Cutler said. "But now we're moving into the clean-up phase and we're thinking about what else we can do."

At press time Sunday, the Fernley flood's casualties still were limited to homes and possessions as no injuries were reported.

Mayor Cutler praised the efforts of his townspeople as the aftermath of the flood begins to set in.

"You know, I think both days went pretty good all things considered," he said, "... starting with the evacuation effort and then the effort to get everything under control. I can't say enough about the people that live here."

The levee break came after a day of unusually heavy rainfall for the town that averages only 5 inches of precipitation annually.

The rain was considered a likely contributor to the levee's failure but officials said an investigation of the cause was continuing, including the possibility burrowing rodents played a role, as they did in a smaller collapse at a different spot in the levee that flooded about 60 Fernley homes in December 1996.

The breech originally was estimated to be up to 150 feet long but officials said Sunday it was closer to 50 feet.

Figuring out the cause of the levee break, how to get people back on their feet, and setting a timetable for recovery will have kept Cutler up most of the night.

"I've slept very little," he said. "But I'm OK. It's not about me, it's about the people ... I'm OK."

• The Associated Press contributed to this report.