MPR’s Lorna Benson interviews Winona resident Calvin Fremling, who shares memories of 1965 flood that threatened the town.

Winona is well protected by a ten-point-five mile, 25-foot high permanent flood control dike. That wasn't the case in 1965, when the town was working furiously to build a temporary dike that would protect against the rapidly rising water. Fremling remembers patrolling a mile long section of the that dike. He worked in four hour shifts, looking for leaks.

From April 12-19, 1965, the Mississippi River rose seven feet in seven days, going from flood stage (13 feet) to a record 20.77 feet…higher than much of the city of Winona.