Canton, South Dakota mayor promises change after residents criticize flood response

Days after a fiery meeting, in Canton residents criticized members of the town's government for their response to the flooding that historic rainfall brought to the area, Mayor Sandi Lundstrom says change is coming.

In a message posted on Canton's website, Lundstrom said that officials will "conduct an evaluation of the areas where we fell short and identify the areas where we made progress in disaster mitigation" and "update our outdated 2003 process and emergency plan as well as create an action plan to improve our community’s readiness for future events."

More: Canton residents lambaste mayor, commissioner for lack of emergency flooding response plan

Some parts of Canton received more than a foot of rain between June 20 and June 22, almost exactly a decade after the 2014 flood that struck the area , which many residents were astonished had not led to better preparation.

Lundstrom, along with commissioners Jackie Pigors and Tyler Larson and finance officer Kyle Cwach, were the primary targets of residents' ire at an informal special meeting Monday night , which included questioning why no one was directing sandbagging efforts and why broken and outdated pumps needed to prevent sewage backup had not been replaced since 2019 or earlier.

Lundstrom also wrote that she and other officials would be working on a proposal to hire a dedicated city administrator, something that Commissioner Paul Garbers had demanded at the Monday meeting.

“If we don’t get a leader in this town, we ain’t going anywhere,” Garbers said on Monday. “I’ve thought since I started that we need an administrator. Two years ago (Lundstrom), when you ran for mayor, you said we didn’t need one for three to five years. When (Pigors) ran… (Pigors) said we needed one… when is three to five years up? I came on (the commission) to try to do what the citizens of Canton wanted us to do.”

The message also said that Gov. Kristi Noem was working with the Federal Emergency Management Agency to move toward an official disaster declaration for Lincoln County, and urged property owners to "take numerous pictures of the damage caused by this event."

Lundstrom also thanked anyone who volunteered during the flooding.

"We witnessed the spirit of the Canton people and the resolve of the community leaders in assuring the situation was well handled in a manner that would not have been possible for the city personnel to do alone, nor the citizens," she wrote.

The city has been under wastewater restrictions since June 22, with only a three-hour break on Monday, after rains strained the sewer system and caused a backup. As of Friday, the city has re-opened the town's laundromat for the numerous people who need to wash clothes, but the car washes remain closed until the city can determine otherwise potentially later in the day.

"We are still asking that citizens still be cognizant of water usage in their homes," the city posted to its webpage. "We also want to let citizens know that we do have a spare pump and have access to more pumps if the need arises today, over the weekend, or on Monday with the possibility of rain. We appreciate your patience during this time."

This article originally appeared on Sioux Falls Argus Leader: Canton, South Dakota mayor promises change after residents criticize flood response