Longtime South Dakota politician Tim Johnson died Tuesday at the age of 77, according to a family spokesperson.
Johnson, a Democrat, served nearly a decade in the South Dakota State Legislature before winning a seat in the U.S. House in 1987.
After 10 years as the lone Representative for the state of South Dakota, he won a seat and served three terms in the U.S. Senate, for 18 more years in federal office.
“It's hard to imagine someone living a life more meaningful and impactful than Tim's--and, in the end, impact and meaning are the best that any of us can hope to achieve," said Drey Samuelson, Johnson's chief of staff. "Tim succeeded in reaching those goals way beyond what I'm sure were his wildest dreams when he was a young man.”
He was one of the last Democrats to hold statewide or congressional office in South Dakota. Johnson never lost an election, and his last election win was in 2008.
He was a graduate of the University of South Dakota, and lived much of his life in Vermillion.
*Additionally, USD is set to host a grand reopening ceremony for the newly renovated South Dakota Union building on Thursday.
The South Dakota Union building, along Clark Street, got $8 million in improvements. The South Dakota Union is home to USD’s Department of Psychology, Psychological Services Center, the Disaster Mental Health Institute, and more.
It was built in 1930, and in spite of the Department of Psychology being one of USD’s largest departments, the building had not undergone any major updates since it opened. The work took place over the last 18 months, and included changes to modern classrooms and student spaces, new clinic spaces, and enhanced research laboratory space.
“The renovations have greatly improved the learning environment for our state’s future mental health professionals,” said Department of Psychology Chairman Doug Peterson.
*Two helicopter crews with the Iowa National Guard continue to help communities in western North Carolina recover from Hurricane Helene.
The crews are flying Chinook helicopters to haul cargo to areas cut off by washed out roads and bridges.
National Guard spokeswoman Jackie Schmillen said they’ve flown more than 150,000 pounds of food, water and other supplies to communities in the area.
“They’re able to talk to the community members and say, ‘What are your needs right now?’ Maybe it’s diapers. Maybe it’s medication that’s not in that area right now. And they’re able to communicate that back with those specific coordinates so people can get the things that they need right now,” Schmillen said.
She said the Iowa National Guard helicopters will stay in the region at least through Sunday, but the mission could change depending on the severity of Hurricane Milton when it lands in Florida this week.
Also, Governor Jim Pillen announced the mobilization of the Nebraska Telecommunicator Emergency Response Team to assist North Carolina. The group deployed on October 4 to Buncombe County for 14 days, a county that is one of the hardest hit locations from the storm.
*In other disaster response news, the Federal Emergency Management Agency will close two Siouxland Disaster Recovery Centers at the end of Saturday, October 12.
The two centers that are closing are in Clay and Sioux counties, which are two of the Northwest Iowa counties most impacted by severe late June flooding. About 10 such centers opened to help connect people to flooding relief programs and resources, and most have now closed after several weeks of operation.
FEMA is also reminding people that Iowa homeowners and renters affected by the flooding in June have until Oct. 22 to apply for FEMA assistance.
