Oil boom strains emergency services
Oil boom strains emergency services
By Jerry W. Kram
(Part of a series of stories from the International Oil and Gas Summit held in New Town, Feb. 1-2.)
More people. More trucks. More accidents. More crime.
Those are some of the impacts Dawn White has observed since the oil boom began on the Fort Berthold Reservation. White is an officer with the Three Affiliated Tribes Law Enforcement. She presented the challenges faced by law enforcement and other emergency services at the Allottees International Oil and Gas Summit held in New Town Feb. 1-2.
She said the biggest challenge was simply the number of people. According to the Census Bureau, the population of Fort Berthold increased from 5,915 to 6,341 between 2000 to 2010. She estimated that number was short of the actual mark by several thousand because of growth in the last two years.
