WALTER'S CAMP, INC.

POST OFFICE BOX 31

PALO VERDE, CALIFORNIA 92266
(619) 854-9487

Presentation of

FRANK A. DOKTER
Imperial County

Before The

COMMITTEE ON INTERIOR AND INSULAR AFFAIRS

Needles, California

September 8, 1983

STATEMENT:

11

FRANK A. DOKTER WALTER'S CAMP AREA -IMPERIAL COUNTY, CA
CONGRESSIONAL COMMITTEE ON INTERIOR AND INSULAR AFFAIRS
SEPTEMBER 8, 1983 NEEDLES, CA

We were not informed of this Hearing in time to Submit a formal statement to the Board, so we would like to submit our comments at this time to be taken into consideration. We did submit some photographs at the hearing and would like to submit a few more at this time.

Our biggest problem right now is obtaining help for
ourselves and our community. We are located in a very rural
area and are being ignored by most. Our business is completely
under water and all of our neighbors have been evacuated from
the area since all of their homes (well over 100) are engulfed
in water. I am unable to get statements to submit to the
Committee from most of the property owners since they are gone
from the area and are seeking help from family and friends.
We are crying for help because of our unique position.
We have been living in limbo for three months now. Most of
the residents here are retired and this is all they had left
in the world. There is no end in sight for them and all I
see is fear and dissillusionment in these people as they
come to check on their homes. Most have nothing left to live
for. All their money was invested in their homes and they
have none left to rebuild with. They also lack the physical
Where do they go now?
and,

ability to rebuild their homes.
what do they do? We have gone through stages: 1-PANIC -when
water arrived and we worked to prevent damage and loss.
2-ANGER -why did this happen and who caused it? 3-EMPTYNESS
realization of losses and enability to do anything about it.
4-FRIGHT -how long will this continue? 5-DESPARATION - How
much longer can we survive?

We all feel such frustration with the lack of help and concern from our Government. All we see on the news is the people in the Galveston Hurricane Disaster being helped before and after the disaster; the people living on the Coast Line being helped before and after the high tides; the people living on the San Andreas Fault being helped; financial aide being given to other countries. The help seems to be there for others, but where is the help for our area?

We are left with the feeling that we are "no one" - at least to the Government. The Government did this to all of us and yet we are the only ones not being helped. Is this because the Government can't admit what it did? All we are asking for is help. Someone - please, Help! This isn't an ordinary disaster. We have had to leave our homes and business' and who knows when we can even begin to clean up - let alone resumes our lives?

Mosquitos have been an overwhelming problem because of the flood. No one will come to the River now because of the fear of becoming ill. When the water resides, large pools of water will be left to breed more mosquitos. The fast moving water has washed in new sandbars now and unless dredging is started soon, we will be landlocked. This is just touching on the problems that we are faced with and will be faced with in the future.

It is obvious that The Bureau of Reclamation refuses to see its fault, so how will they find a remedy? You have to admit guilt before you can resolve a problem. Dr. Larry Paulson seems, to all of us in Imperial County, to have come up with a solution to this problem, if the Government will give him a chance. I think what this Country needs is to listen to its "Ordinary People" a whole lot more.

What have we done wrong in the way we have asked for help? Is our County or Area too poor? We Begged for help when the flooding first started. We received none. All the other Counties received help in sandbagging and preparing for the flood. We received no help, physically or otherwise. We also had to purchase bags at .35 to .40cents per bag besides filling and placing them. There has been a Parade of Government Officials come through with kind words, but sympathy isn't what we need or want. We would like some action taken in our area. Financial help is what we need now since the damage is done.

We appreciate the open minds and the questions made public by Congressmen Udall, Lewis, Reid, and Stumph. We are sure that something positive will result out of these hearings. It seems as though Arizona and Nevada Senators and Governors have been able to act and get the help needed for their areas. We have

contacted our Governor and many officials, they don't seem to acknowledge a problem or even our existence. The only official that has helped in any way is our Assemblyman, Steve Peace. So, you can imagine our frustrations.

When we purchased this Camp 4 years ago, no warnings were given or have hit our desk since we purchased the park about any flood, from the Bureau of Reclamation. We have worked hard to build a suitable place for families to come for recreation and relaxation. A lot of sweat, tears, money, and love have gone into this place to make it what it was before the flood. It took us four years to build it because we did it with our own resources.

I worked heavy Construction (Ironworker) for over 15 years before I brought my family out here to live. fell off a bridge and broke my back and had to leave my occupation. We decided that the best area to raise our family and to earn a living for them would be here. We all worked hard and long and saved our money to build this Camp, but it seems now that it was all for nothing. Myself, my wife, and my two teenage boys put their hearts and souls into making this a good place to live and vacation and worked against all odds when economy told us to quit. We didn't quit and this year was finally going to prove that hard work would win.

For two years we had such low water that people couldn't launch their boats and the fish couldn't even spawn here in the refuge area. We were so excited when we received the word that we were finally going to have some water here, and business showed it also. There was such an increase in interest from people that we decided to complete the new area to provide enough camping area for the amount of reservations that were coming in. Our boys were pleased because they were finally going to be able to receive a wage for their hard work. If we had been notified about how much water would be coming down our way just 1 month prior to the flood, we would have waited to expand our park. Especially since all of the new area is completely gone along with the $28,000.00 spent to develop it. To try to save our camp when we finally did receive word of the flood, we again had to hire equipment in to try to save our camp and our homes since we couldn't get any help from any County, State, or Federal Agency. We did all that we could to help our neighbors and ourselves, but it was in vain.