Casperson tours Little Girl's Point damage

LITTLE GIRL'S POINT - State Sen. Tom Casperson, R-Escanaba, toured part of Little Girl's Point to see first hand the damage to Lake Road resulting from the heavy rains and flooding following a July 11 storm.

Casperson began his trip at the Michigan State Police post in Wakefield before traveling to the Point via Lake Road.

The tour took roughly four hours, with Casperson stopping to look at the damage caused by the flooding, including several of the washouts on Lake Road, and talking to residents.

Dale Nelson, whose mom owns the house adjacent to Oman's Creek and whose family has owned the property for 112 years, described being on the Point during the storm.

"It was scary, " Nelson said, adding it was like a movie.

There was no wind during the storm, Nelson said, just rain.

He said the family has a connection to the property and the Point, given how long they have had it.

"(I'd) hate to see that gone," he said, referring to the house. "I'm very protective of it, we want to keep this around."

Following the tour, Casperson expressed amazement at the impact the storm had on the area and said it was clear the state needed to come in to help the recovery effort.

"Wow, this is devastation. This is amazing to see something like this. This is not just a little deal, this is major," Casperson said. "The county can't take care of this, this is way beyond the county road commission, the state has to step in.

"(I'm) hoping the governor comes and sees what I see, and then we all start coordinating together and figure out a way to help - and quickly."

Casperson added the arrival winter would only further complicate the process.

"If you think about it, we're heading into the middle of July, there's not a lot of season left for this kind of major work they're going to have to do," he said. "I think this has to get this done in a timely fashion - I mean you have to get these people out of here. And then it's not just that, you have to get it repaired appropriately to get ready for the winter season and then the spring, or they could be looking at problems all over again."

Several residents expressed their gratitude to both Casperson and the county road commission workers for the efforts in re-opening parts of the road and allowing stranded residents to leave as necessary.

Casperson said after seeing the Point, he would work to ensure the state did what it could to help.

"I'm going to be pushing the idea of 'timely' and that they need money, there's no way around it," Casperson said. "I don't where yet but that's the message I'm bringing back, the locals can't take care of this."

When asked about some residents who felt forgotten by state - Gov. Rick Snyder declared a state of emergency Friday, whereas Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker declared a state of emergency for the eight counties in Wisconsin impacted by the storm Tuesday - Casperson said distance and communication issues downplayed how bad the storm hit Gogebic County.

"Even in our office, we had not heard a whole lot," he said. "We heard there were some problems, but nothing like this. So some of it was communication, I guess I would argue, and the distance is a problem.

"So at the end of the day ... regardless of all that, it's time to step up. I mean for the state now to kick in here and step up. I hope the governor kicks in and sees what I see. I know he will."

Gov. Snyder is expected to visit the area damaged by the storm today.

Casperson said he regretted it took so long to fully grasp the storm's impact and the situation the residents were in.

"I feel bad, because this is that bad," Casperson said. "And I know the governor well enough to know if he had realized this was going on, there would have been some action quicker than this."