We were among just a handful of press outside the Underhill, Vermont home of Captain Richard Phillips at 6:30 this morning.  ABC, NBC, CBS and CNN weren’t here, just one other satellite truck and camera crew providing a pool (shared) feed to the 3 broadcast nets, plus a reporter and photographer from the NY Post .

The home sits on a rural two lane road surrounded by fields of grass, thick stands of trees and mountains in every direction,  including Vermont’s tallest peak, Mount Mansfield.  The town of Underhill has a population of just over 3000.

I spoke twice at length with Gina Coggio, a sister-in-law of the Captain, who told me the family was staying optimistic and positive and had reason to believe the situation would turn out well.

The family knew Richard had a dangerous job but he’s “amazing at it”, they weren’t surprised he’d offer himself as hostage because “he’s that kind of man” and it shouldn’t be necessary to arm ships, “especially when they’re carrying relief to people who desperately need it.”

“It’s a scary situation, a sad situation and a real situation” she said, and everyone is “doing the best they can to insure everyone’s safe and it ends peacefully.”

We thanked her for her time and promised not to bother her, instead waiting for the family to approach us when they had an update.

The media crowd grew slowly throughout the morning, then started to mushroom. Three large satellite trucks rolled in along with a total of nearly two dozen cars, lining the roads and field across the street.

A dozen cameras set up on tripods on the other side of the Phillips’ weathered white picket fence.

The family asked the press to respect their privacy and stay off the yard and across the street but many weren’t listening, running to the property whenever there was a sign of activity, like when friends used a yellow ribbon to tie flowers to a tree.

Finally, at 4 pm, family friend and neighbor Michael Willard approached a podium set up for Andrea Phillips and addressed the assembled mass of cameras, microphones and news people.

“I have a very brief statement from Mrs. Phillips. She has decided she does not want to make a statement now… until this is resolved, and would like you to respect her privacy. She has stated she would like you off of her premises and away from her house by tomorrow morning.”

Since the Phillips family owns the property across the street too, this meant we wouldn’t be able to speak to ANY family or friends coming or going to and from the house.

“Could you be more specific?” I asked. “You mean the entire area?  She doesn’t want any media anywhere near her house?”

“That’s correct” he said. “She’s… She’s done very well under the circumstances and, uh, I think this is getting a little bit out of hand for her so…”

“She understands the world is concerned?” I asked.

“She’s fully aware of that but you know, she’s under enormous strain and she’d just like her privacy respected… Right now she’s just overwhelmed and she just can’t deal with this right now. She’s upset enough about her husband and his situation and just needs her privacy.”

He thanked us and left and we will of course do exactly as the family has asked.

One house appears dry behind sandbag dike, building to the right is lost in Oakport Township, MN

Oakport Township didn’t fare as well as Fargo when the Red River reached its record high.  120 people had to be rescued by boat when the river overwhelmed a connecting creek and poured into the streets.

There are dozens of homes compromised, with skating rinks in the front yards and water in the basements.

One house belonging to an elderly couple was protected by a sandbag wall but burned to the ground in a blaze apparently sparked by a propane leak. Firefighters could only get within 200 feet of the property because of the flood.

We met Fargo Police Officer Dale Stoll wading out of the water on his flooded street, in uniform headed to work another 12 hour shift. His son is fighting in Afghanistan and learned their house was in trouble via facebook.

“Water hit the electrical outlets so we gotta rewire” Dale told me. ” We have to replace the wood and the hot water heater and furnace…”.

He told me he bought flood insurance March 3rd but it takes 30 days to kick in.

He said it could’ve been worse and he’s trying to stay focused on serving the people of his community and he’s glad to have a job that can help take his mind off his own troubles, but at the same time it’s hard to concentrate knowing all the work that needs to be done at home.

Power crews work on lines as flood waters slowly recede in Oakport.

We watched a power crew in a bucket truck work on electric lines and some guys with a bulldozer and flatbed preparing to replace “road closed” signs with more permanent concrete barricades.

And we met Roger Fremo, who has a strange and eerie shelf of ice at bumper level across his garage marking the flood’s high water mark. He managed to keep most of the river out of his house with a couple pumps running around the clock.

“We had water coming in thru the windows. It was a real battle … but we won”.

He said he was scared when they issued the red alert but decided to stick it out. The neighbors who heeded the warnings and left, he said, were more likely to have suffered in the end.

Check out this pic!

Ice shelf: Original flood line still frozen inside garage

Road conditions are ridiculous. The snow has been coming down thick non-stop for hours. Winds are gusting up to 30 mph, creating drifts and buffeting the few vehicles out and about. There’s thick ice on the pavement and flood waters over some stretches of highway, forcing numerous closures and detours. Travel advisories are in effect and most seem to be heeding the warnings. There’s very little traffic, save for an occasional four-wheel-drive and the snowplows. Visibility is a quarter mile or less near Casselton, where they’ve set up a temporary National Guard and Red Cross staging area and shelter at the local school, which serves all grades. There are no classes all week so the building was available. 144 evacuees from Fargo were brought in Friday and Saturday, taking up residence on cots in the gym. 19 are still here. There’s a medical unit set up, the cafeteria is serving meals and movies are being shown on a TV. Board games are set up on tables in the dining area, and one man played solitaire this afternoon. More evacuees from a nursing home are staying temporarily at St. Leo’s Catholic Church just down the road. Snow has drifted up to the roof line outside the school’s front door, where the wind continues to howl. Otherwise Casselton is quiet, and the deputies we’ve spent the day with have had no emergencies to respond to.

I’ll keep you posted on the latest from Fargo! Keep checking back!