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Iowa town struggling to recover from flooding

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May 15th, 2019 by Ric Hanson

HAMBURG, Iowa (AP) — The southwest Iowa town of Hamburg is facing a long list of challenges as it works to recover from this spring’s flooding, and the lack of federal disaster aid is making everything harder.

Mayor Cathy Crain says Hamburg had to take out a $2 million emergency loan to help pay expenses while it works to fix its water treatment plant and waits for Congress to approve an aid package.

Before the flooding in March, Hamburg owed only $56,000 and had $560,000 in savings, but almost all of that has been spent. Crain says Hamburg has begun asking for donations online to help the town recover.