Scooping sand and shoveling it into bags is tough, sweaty work, and even the young can’t escape twinges in the back or heavy arms after hefting half a ton of the stuff.

Nineteen-year-old John Bacon, a lab technician at M Street Dental, called into special duty last week on behalf of his employer, paused for a breather after four hours attacking the City’s sand pile at Les Gove Community Campus. He looked pretty well used up.

“I’ve been here since 11 a.m., and it’s hard work,” said Bacon, who had stayed to help Auburn resident Mark Nelson fill his 30 bags.

Nelson and Bacon joined dozens of others around the 60-ton pile of sand Oct. 15, all preparing their homes and businesses to withstand potential flooding of the Green River this fall and winter, owing to the compromised holding capacity of the Howard Hanson Dam.

Bags will be available from 12 p.m. until dusk on Tuesdays and Thursdays at:

• Les Gove Community Campus, 910 Ninth St. SE. Sandbags will be located at the southeast corner of the park, accessible from 12th Street.

And from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturdays at:

• Les Gove Community Campus, same location:

• Fulmer Field, 5th and K St. NE. Sandbags will be in the parking lot.

The City is limiting each customer to 30 bags per trip, about a half ton.

The Army Corps of Engineers is supplying the sand, the City is putting it out and providing tools, but its up to the people themselves and volunteers when available to shovel and haul it away.

City Communications Manager Dana Hinman said that between Oct. 15 and 17, people filled about 10,000 sandbags.

Auburn Food Bank Director Debbie Christian showed up with her volunteer coordinator Kayla Sargent and volunteers Tim McCoy and Sara Jepson.

She said the Food Bank’s compressor, which keeps perishables refrigerated, is at ground level and vulnerable to flooding.

“We could lose the food and that’s why we’re out here,” said Christian.

John May, who lives just north of Les Gove Park, said it took him about an hour to complete the first of his two loads. He expects that he will need about 100 bags.

May takes hope from the weather prognosticators.

“They’re saying El Niño, man,” said May. “I think I wasted my money on my season ski pass because it’s supposed to drier and warmer. This will be the first year I hope we don’t have a good snow year.”

Nelson, a resident of Pike Street Northeast, had been watching the news and reading the papers when he noticed his neighbor preparing his basement windows. Good idea, he thought.

“We have a basement right next door, so I went on line and started looking. I read about sewer backups, too. This, loading sand, is the least I can do to keep it from coming in,” Nelson said.

Contact Auburn Reporter News reporter Robert Whale at rwhale@auburn-reporter.com or 253-833-0218, ext. 5052.

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