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Tuesday, June 17, 2008

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BHS grad is on the flood scene

By MIKE O'ROURKE

Associate Editor

The severe flooding in Iowa has been dubbed as that state's "Katrina." That comparison is no stretch in the opinion of Bruce Aune, Cedar Rapids television news anchor and Brainerd High School graduate.

"It got just about all of the downtown area," he said.

A clear assessment of the damage to the public library, a museum, a historic theater that houses a symphony and other structures, has not been possible, Aune said, because emergency officials won't allow inspections yet. They cite public safety issues relating to air quality, the environment and the structural integrity of buildings.

"Not at all," he said when asked if the Katrina comparison was an overstatement.

Bruce Aune

Aune, the anchor of KCRG's 5 p.m., 6 p.m. and 10 p.m. broadcasts, said Texas crews that had worked in New Orleans described the destruction caused by the Cedar River as "terrible."

Aune's station is within the flood perimeter but the broadcast/newspaper company's CEO told emergency officials they weren't leaving. The result was four days of almost continuous news coverage. Only in recent days has the ABC affiliate begun to air network programming such as the NBA finals.

"We've cut back a little now," he said. "People really need a little bit of diversion," Aune said.

The swollen river crested at 31 feet, Aune said, topping the previous high crest of 20 feet in 1929. Aune said his news crews have only been allowed to go on supervised boat tours because of the danger that the current would sweep boats away into the main course of the river.

"It's receded quite a bit and we're to the point where people are really, really wanting to get back into their homes," Aune said.

The broadcaster said that out of about 36,000 Iowans who are homeless because of the flood, about 25,000 are from the Cedar Rapids area. He said his own home is a good distance from the river and has not sustained damage.

"I feel for these people," he said, adding that it was difficult to go on the air sometimes.

Aune, 58, has been a KCRG anchor since 1986. Before that his television career took him to Mankato; Mason City, Iowa; Rockford, Ill.; and Lansing, Mich. However, it all started in 1966 at the KLIZ radio station owned by the late Ed "Tom" O'Brien.

"I never dreamed it was going to be a career," he said.

Aune's mother, Elaine, still lives in Baxter. His father, Allen, died last year. He graduated from Brainerd High School in 1967.

The journalist directed people who wanted to help the people of Iowa to the American Red Cross.

"Keep everyone out here in your prayers," he said.

MIKE O'ROURKE may be reached at mike.orourke@brainerddispatch.com or 855-5860.

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