Reno Gazette-Journal from Reno, Nevada • Page 1

-1 I s) jL v3 i Gl I si (3? Ci' ii lt 3 1 M.H Carson City: 5 Airport open: In Travelers advised to call on status of Reno: Some casinos plan reopen; Pior xr may b'f!" Crews working to clear mud from highways. 3D Tt flights. cancel shows. 50C ATURDAY, JANUARY 4, 189 0 a 1 '(l 3 13 tell 6 'i Preliminary damage estimate: $170 million in Reno E3 Carson City: The Carson River won't return to its hanks until Monday, but workers in the Ash Canyon and Kings Canyon creek areas in cleanup mode. Douglas County: Crews open U.S.

395 to Gardnerville Ranches, where residents had been cut olTt'roni stores lor more than a day, but Carson Valley remains cut IT from points north. Lake Tahoe: Mudslides leave only one way out of the Tahoe btisin. IS Truckee: West River Street is wa-Ticd out, but the city W'-athcietl tire flood of '97 boiler than most. 1 Marilyn j1' 1, 1 Je- rf sli jMi, STILL SOGGY: Aerial vif of P. ooirf)X' 3 Nw Army National Guaid hoticcj OX1C Fixing 1-80 erosion V4 tr.ifi By Susan Voyles Kl NO OAFT h-IOl.

KAI. The New Year's Hood caused Si 70 million damage in Reno, topped by $15 million to the Reno Hilton and $14.8 million to four downtown buildings owned by Han all's. City inspectors said 1,420 buildings were damaged, including 21 with SI million or more. A tilt-up industrial building on lidi-son Way that "literally exploded," said Acting Community Development director Donna Kristaponis. The preliminary estimate will be given to Federal Emergency Agency officials.

The estimates are based on how many feet of water entered the buildings, a FT MA criteria. I'HMA officials are expected to arrive Sunday or Monday. 'resident Bill Clinton declared Washoe, Carson, Douglas, Storey and Lyon counties federal disaster areas Friday. This declaration makes a variety of fedeial programs available to flood victims. Those programs include temporary housing assistance, grants to pay for disaster-related expenses not covered by insurance and low-interest loans from the Small Business Administration.

The feds will also reimburse local governments 75 percent of their eligible costs for removing debris and providing emergency protective services. Kristaponis is hopeful the city's $50 million Hood insurance policy "will pick up a large share" of the $29 million in damages to city property. I I At also would pay a portion of local governments' costs in dealing with the tlood. Shortly after dawn Friday, about 70 city engineers, planners and building inspectors fanned out in flood-stiicken areas to assess flood damage from Stead, downtown, all along the 1 ruckee River and in the city's southeast industrial area. Kristaponis said IT MA wants the information within 4S hours after a disaster hits.

Willi much of their flooded areas still under water, Washoe County and Sparks See DAMAGE on page 6A 1 This is how traffic will flow as a section Prater of the free way is being repaired near West-bound, SPARKS Helms pit in bparks HELMS Pr (half lull) lanes closed temporarily temporarily .0 I -a Hem 4l CO SS1.V ll, A 120-foet-deep hole crentftd by tlood watnrs also eroded approximately 100 feet of concrete shoulder. v.3 f-1 SPUR 1 1 rv Set Ikb. -Sfi 3 East-bound: ft Two lanes of chemicals feared in industrial floodwater By Robert Anqlen IU 1 II ii)I i I he Spaiks Industrial Park is not onh under ualei is also under qua rani inc. Will) 1 he pussibil ol da nger-nih leaching int" tlood waters, police have cordoned oil the area south Interstate 80. ai mi ict I mi ict IT! a I 3 converae Into one West-bound traffic: Two lanes of must converge into one lane just after the Sparks Blvd overpass.

1 1 East-bound: 1 Traffic fans back out into two lanes I 3 lans iust after the West-hound- I 4 l'coiic i ritcresU-'d in donat int1 lor iVukI tchot can do it three ways: Not west Hank Nevada has established a Sierra Nevada Flood Relief Fund to help the Sierra Nevada Chapter of the Amci ican Red Cross nil cleanup and suppoi! ol llurnl ictims. I lie hank itself is contributing $5,000. Details: 785-8441. I lie local Bed Cross, which had to abandon its hcadqnai icrs because id high water, is seek ins', in 'tt icy for supplies. Donations can be mailed to 'I he American Red Toss headquarters at I 1 90 Corporate Reno.

NV SV5H2. Details: 746-5882. I he Salvation Army is collecting clean-up equipment and money to buy Push brooms, cotton v. ct mops, squccgies, large liiickets. scrul) brushes, dustpan and brush sets, large cellulose sponges detergent concentrates, disinfectant concentrates and cnibagc bags, supplies and financial support to 'I he Salvation rm 1 Disaster Scr ices.

1931 Sutro Reno. NV 8 0 5 2 Details: 688-4555. etsr i McCarran Blvd Two lanes ot traffic fans underpass. back out into two lanes 3 to gain acces to McCarran Blvd. exit and nornal travel.

1 Mark Bartleycno (idi'f urt elms Pit erosion cripples -8 Interstate do in bparKS rroy be months mote to restore the 50 foot FiaqTig flood waters noilnng to do inn speculate about tt-u peneu tu wi w. vd iisu nKinwayiOTOur anes. sr-otion of r.a'-f-ir.f;'-! tin. tatcoi iticu nusuicssc today after a chunk of the free-ay officials said cracked loose was sent tumblmq mto the 150 toot- Westbound traffic was dctoured Cost of re a.rtng the deep Helms pit early Friday at Spa4.s boulevard to Prater Way could eceed $1 million lit could tace many weei- even and then to McCarran Boulevard. Story on page 4A 1 It Residents emerge into sunshine, begin to repair damage from flood 9 mm "Right we have ii gnne into an1.

biultliiiUN that are tl. with haa! dm- ni.itei laK." aul i Deputy Inel I ee I eigh-inii can't let people in llieie Several husiiK-e are involved with chemicals, including cyanide and v.uioi types of solvents and uxidieis. lie said, and it may be next week helorc some can gu hack inio operation One uf lie city's duel' concerns. Sierra Chemical, has ahead) been giv en the green light. Working in a grid pattern with the receding tide, teams of haarJ-iiiis material specialists and public health i kaved Mucks west ol MJ arran for occupancy Hat the eastern portion nt the business park remained a hike raiiiiing from or.eto five-lect deep.

"It could he three days before the pond goes down." said Terry Key nobis. Sparks city manager "We don't know what is in there. And anytime you deal with a hazardous material there is a risk hie." Getting to the office was worth See TOXIC on page 6A 1337 RtHO 1 Florin i "When I saw my house, I just stood on my neighbor's elevated flower box and cried. Michelle Luna Reno resident News 11 OA Horrz-r Of.f: 7C Opinion OA LocaVRcjnrt 1 100 'OA tow yj Sports 1 6B Oiatur t'u Sierra Lite 1 8C Business MOD Iji-h' I'G 7 fjl; 6C Comics 7C Classified 3 -14E Crciszord 70 Autos 1 8F By Robert Anglen Kl vxiAtn -toi. RYU.

One shovel at a time is how Dean Gross and other residents are cleaning up the damage clone to their neighborhood. 1 torn Truckee to 1'yramid Lake, people began the task of reclamation Ididay, scooping out properly ami possessions swallowed in the furious maw of the I ruckee River. And on Idlewild Drive in Reno, they used shovels. "You just keep digging." (iross said, pushing another load of silt and muck off his front lawn. "It was the eeriest thing I have ever experienced." he said, dc-sctihing his entry into a neighbor's house at the height of the tlood.

"It was weird. There was three-feet of water with all of these knick-knacks and furniture floating See REPAIR on page 4A David Parker'Hfi' ENTREPRENEUR: Delc-es Wilson of Euaene. v.erd to a T-shirt chop to ha a dozen of these shirts made She was se'hng them in the flooded area of V.rglnn Street Friday Hill 4 ') 1.