N.D. flooding forces some Minn. companies to relocate

by Rupa Shenoy, Minnesota Public Radio

Minot, N.D. — Record flooding in North Dakota is affecting Minnesota companies with operations and facilities in that state.

Edina-based MLT Vacations will temporarily relocate 100 of their 350 employees in Minot to offices in Edina and Bismarck. Minot will likely receive additional flooding this weekend from the Souris River, which has already broken its 130-year-old flood record.

Ken Pomerantz, president of MLT Vacations, said nearly all his Minot employees have flooded homes or have taken in friends and family displaced by flooding. Pomerantz has extended time off for those workers.

One hundred MLT Vacations employees in Minot have been evacuated from their homes. The staff in Minnesota and North Dakota offices plan to converge on Minot in the wake of the flooding to help with cleanup, Pomerantz said. Employees from the Edina offices collected 3,000 pounds of supplies for their North Dakota colleagues. The company has had operations in Minot for 11 years.

"It's really going to be a situation where we're going to work almost one off with each employee depending on what they're personal circumstances are. if they're able to relocate and work away from where they're home is, we'll be able to support them for as long as they want," Pomerantz said.