In an op-ed piece in the Minot Daily News in Minot, North Dakota, Lance Kennedy, president of the North Dakota Manufactured Housing Association, says eight manufactured home communities, representing 800 homesites, were wiped out by the flooding of the Souris River earlier this spring. He says the government removed trash and debris, but no one has come forward to remove the damaged homes, which would allow residents to purchase new homes and move back into their own communities. Despite the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) having indicated they are seeking ways to remove the homes, their efforts are focused on bringing in temporary housing. Many homeowners do not have the resources to remove their damaged homes. In addition, repairs are needed to the infrastructure of the homesites, but the destroyed homes need to be moved first. Winter is fast approaching, he warns, and it would be a shame for 800 permanent housing sites to go unused.

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