{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["http://noem.house.gov/index.cfm/in-the-news?ContentRecord_id=16dce693-305a-4799-b616-74ff25349084", "Rapid City Journal: Mayors tell Noem they are concerned for ranchers", "2013-10-15", "2013", "2013-10", "Republican", "House", "SD", "Kristi Noem", "N000184", "noem.house.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Northern Hills mayors told Rep. Kristi Noem that one of the most pressing needs they have is removal of debris from creek beds that flow through federal lands near their communities.\r\nNoem visited with the mayors of Sturgis, Deadwood, Spearfish, Belle Fourche, Newell and Hermosa during a visit to the Black Hills Sunday. Following a meeting with Meade County ranchers, she asked the mayors about how they survived the storm.\r\n\"We tore up some equipment and our snow removal budget is toast, but we survived,\" said Chuck Turbiville.\r\nSturgis Mayor Mark Carstensen and Sturgis City Manager Daniel Ainslie both stressed to Noem that they were extremely worried about clogged drainage areas when 3 inches of rain fell following the record 3 feet of snow.\r\n\"The potential for flooding is there. The stream beds are a disaster in the canyons,\" he said. \"And none of us have the resources to clean up the river beds on BLM and Forest Service.\"\r\nNoem said she has attempted to call agencies such as the Forest Service and Department of Agriculture during the government shut down, but says she can't get her calls returned.\r\n\"It's kind of shocking to me that we can't even get a call back,\" Noem said during the meeting at the Sturgis City Hall.\r\nSturgis mayor Mark Carstensen said Sturgis City employees were tired after work 12- to 14-hour days for a week straight following the storm.\r\nCarstensen told Noem the things they could use most from the National Guard or other federal agency is trucks with grappling hooks to pick up debris and dump trucks to haul debris away.\r\nBelle Fourche mayor Gary Hendrickson said his community was looking at $350,000 to $400,000 in additional expenses from the storm.\r\nHe, too, said the community could use help from the National Guard and asked Noem about expediting FEMA funds.\r\nHis big concern was for ranchers who have suffered incredibly from the storm.\r\n\"We're all gonna feel that trickle down effect,\" he said.\r\nTurbiville said in Deadwood they hired snow removal contractors to help haul away nearly five feet of snow.\r\n\"We're going to have to go into reserves to pay for all these expenses,\" he said.\r\nThe city signed a disaster declaration which was forwarded to the governor along with one from Lawrence County.\r\nNoem encouraged all the mayors to keep track of additional expenses to be included for disaster aid.\r\nSpearfish Mayor Dana Boke said she was happy to report that TMone has been moved to the city's recreation center and employees were scheduled to be back on the job this week.\r\nThe TMone building, which is owned by the city of Spearfish, collapsed under the weight of the heavy snow during the blizzard of Oct. 4 and Oct. 5.\r\n\"We're working on a plan to replace the building,\" Boke said.\r\nNewell Mayor Mike Wolf said the biggest concern he has from the storm is that area ranchers are compensated for their losses.\r\n\"I want to make sure you guys are helping the ag producers,\" he said. \"From what I have heard, this is gonna break some of them.\"\r\nRead story here.", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["http://noem.house.gov/index.cfm/in-the-news?ContentRecord_id=16dce693-305a-4799-b616-74ff25349084"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 1.5376841183751822, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}