A RESOLUTION, Acknowledging the local disaster impacting the Hideaway Hills neighborhood in the community of Black Hawk, Meade County, South Dakota.
WHEREAS, the primary financial asset for many young families in South Dakota, lies in the value of their family homes; and
WHEREAS, the Hideaway Hills community of Blackhawk, South Dakota, suffered a shocking local disaster, unprecedented in the history of South Dakota, when an underground gypsum mine collapsed beneath their homes; and
WHEREAS, the residents of this community, our fellow South Dakotans, through no fault of their own, are suffering extreme financial and emotional crises as they navigate an uncertain financial future; and
WHEREAS, many of the affected families have lost their homes to bankruptcy, foreclosure, or severe devaluation, or continue to deplete personal assets with mortgage payments on homes and properties that are uninhabitable and worthless; and
WHEREAS, due to this disaster, many of the affected families have been evacuated from their homes, with no option to ever return; and
WHEREAS, the affected families and neighbors have been denied insurance claims and other assistance from federal, state, county, or municipal agencies.
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, by the Senate of the Ninety-Sixth Legislature of the State of South Dakota, that the Senate acknowledges this tragedy as a local disaster and affirms its support for all our affected fellow South Dakotans.