Vernonia continues to battle back from December '07 floods

By Associated Press Published: Dec 3, 2008 at 12:57 PM PST Last Updated: Dec 3, 2008 at 2:37 PM PST
Vernonia continues to battle back from December '07 floods »Play Video
Vernonia resident Kathleen Spinden, left, with her daughter Mickell Maller, right, greets her in-laws from Hermiston, Oregon, Sherman and Maudeen Spinden to assist with flood clean-up in Vernonia, Ore., Sunday Dec. 9, 2007. (AP Photo/Greg Wahl-Stephens)

VERNONIA, Ore. (AP) - Tuesday marked the one-year anniversary of the floods that devastated the Coast Range town of Vernonia in rural Oregon.

More than 300 homeowners were forced out of their homes and Vernonia High School was damaged beyond repair in the flash flood that covered much of the city in 3 to 5 feet of mud and debris.

The flood caused about $100 million in damage to the town, which has been struggling to recover ever since.

Topics related to the aftermath of the storm were discussed at a town hall meeting Tuesday evening, and the varsity basketball team hosted its first basketball game in a newly restored gym.

The small town continues to recover from the flooding.

(Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)

Residents ride a boat through floodwaters in December 2007.