Hager City Business Focuses On Clean-Up After Spring Flooding
MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) -- Located on an island in the Mighty Mississippi, Harbor Bar was built here because of the river.
Instead of a beautiful view, that water is making a big mess after the spring thaw. Owner Brad Smith says there is about 2 feet of water inside his business right now, but this is something he's dealt with before.
"Maybe 15 floods? I stopped counting a long time ago," Smith said.
He has got the art of cleaning up down to a science.
"Everything in the place is going to get scrubbed at least three or four times," Smith said.
Once the water goes down, he claims the doors will be back open in two days.
"One thing these floods do is they toughen you up," he said.
If floods make a person strong, consider Smith is as tough as nails. He beat stage 4 throat cancer a few years ago. After that experience, the flooding just doesn't seem like such a big deal.
Smith says the biggest impact isn't physical damage, but financial, since the bar is open year-round.
"That's the big thing we worry about after the floods. Everybody thinks I'm out of business and I'm not going to be," Smith said.
So just like the river, he will continue to rush forward, focusing on drier days.
At this point, Smith fully expects his business to be back open in time for the annual Spring Flood Run on April 20, one of his busiest days of the year.
