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 National Guard works to make water safe for North Dakota hospital By Army Sgt. Darron Salzer
                National Guard Bureau
 MINOT, N.D. - Water is often called a precious resource, and when floodwaters  back up city water and sanitation systems and make the water unsafe to drink,  residents can learn just how precious a resource it is. That’s  where people like Army Sgt. Burton Atkinson and Army Sgt. 1st Class John  Halgren come in, because making dirty water safe to drink is what they and  their team do, and they are doing it for the local hospital here. “We’re  purifying water for the hospital ... in case the water plant has a problem,” said  Halgren, a water purification specialist with the North Dakota National Guard’s  136th Combat Sustainment Support Battalion. “Right  now, in the city of Minot, you’re not suppose to drink the tap water,” said  Atkinson, a water purification noncommissioned officer with the 132nd  Quartermaster Company. “You’re  supposed to boil it, so the water has been deemed unsafe ... so we set this  [water purification unit] up to avoid having to go through a bunch of steps [to  have clean water].” Atkinson  assures that whatever water goes through the purification unit is “decent  water.” Like  many other Soldiers, he has seen a lot of calls-to-action in the last month in  many parts of the state. “We’ve  been in Minot on this [mission] for about a week-and-a-half, we spent a week in  Bismark, and we’ll be here for another week,” he said. “We’ve been running all  sorts of missions, staying busy and doing a little bit of everything.” Atkinson  – like many other North Dakota Guard members – is no stranger to the floods  that have been occurring across the state. “I live  in an evacuated area down in Velva,” he said. “As of right now, there is no  water at my house, but I have everything taken out of it.” Halgren  is not from the Minot area, but said he is also experiencing flooding near his  home. Helping  out and feeling a sense of contribution to the fight are what Atkinson said he  enjoys most about his job as a water purification sergeant. “It’s  hard to be away from family and your home,” he said, “especially when you’re in  an evacuated area ... but I’m glad to be here and helping out Minot because there  is really nothing I can do at my house.”
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