A flood of record on the Souris River has resulted in an intensive flood-protection effort in southwest Manitoba that includes evacuations and dike construction and reinforcement. The rural municipalities of Arthur, Cameron, Glenwood and Oakland, the towns of Melita, Hartney, Souris and the village of Wawanesa are working closely with the Manitoba government.
Record inflows from the Souris River in southwest Manitoba and the northern U.S. will empty into the Assiniboine upstream of Portage la Prairie. The upper Assiniboine River flows southeast from the Shellmouth near the Saskatchewan border.
Specific activities include:
Melita
• Increasing the levels of portable dams or existing clay dikes to a level higher than early spring levels.
• Building dike protection along PTH 3 and 83 with barriers and super sandbags.
Hartney area
• Putting in place 2,400 super sandbags and an earthen dike to protect the Maple Grove Colony.
• Assessing protection needs for several isolated houses.
Souris area
• Clay dike protection for heritage homes and from the river with further protection for a number of properties using clay dikes, super sandbags and smaller bags depending on available space.
• Super sandbag dikes as secondary protection along the street in front of heritage homes.
• Clay dike along Plum Creek.
Wawanesa area
• A combination of super sandbags and clay diking.
Water and waste-water treatment plants and other critical infrastructure in Souris and Wawanesa are being monitored.
Provincial support resources such as engineering, project management, emergency social services and agriculture officials will be assisting communities.
Existing dikes put into place this spring will have to be raised and strengthened.
The Town of Melita issued mandatory evacuations for all properties and businesses in the Machinery Row area, as well as for a motel located along the Souris River.
On June 25, the Town of Souris issued mandatory evacuations for 65 homes due to loss of access on the bridge over the Souris River, as well as the possible loss of essential services. This area has been notified to evacuate by Thursday, June 30. The town issued mandatory evacuations for 22 homes on June 9 and a further voluntary evacuation for 17 homes one street back from the mandatory evacuation zone.
A precautionary evacuation of 24 long-term care residents from the Wawanesa Health Centre is being co-ordinated by the Assiniboine Regional Health Authority. Residents will be staying in other facilities within the Assiniboine health region until the flood risk passes.
The Village of Wawanesa issued mandatory evacuations for 35 properties located along the Souris River.
At this time, 2,768 Manitobans are evacuated.
A ring dike is being constructed in St. Laurent to protect the community. The dike will be owned by the RM of St. Laurent and is being built with engineering advice and financial support from the Manitoba government.
Flood waters should be considered contaminated waters and anyone working around flood waters should take precautions, particularly when addressing basement flooding. Rubber boots and protective gloves are recommended. Water may be ground seepage or it may be river water which has been contaminated by sewage.
The scale, scope and ongoing nature of this year’s flood can be very challenging for affected Manitoba families. There are resources to help deal with stress and anxiety which result from a crisis situation such as this flood. Resources include Manitoba Farm and Rural Support Services 1-866-367-3276 (1-866-FOR-FARM) toll-free; Klinic Community Health Centre 24-hour crisis line 786-8686 in Winnipeg or 1-888-322-3019 toll-free; and Health Links-Info Santé can also help find resources through local regional health authorities or community mental-health services office 788-8200 in Winnipeg or 1-888-315-9257 toll-free. Additional information and tips are available at www.gov.mb.ca/flooding/stressinfo.html.
Flood Forecast
Souris River
The U.S. National Weather Service today increased the forecast peak flow at Westhope to 29,800 cfs, an estimated increase of 2,500 cfs since the June 25 forecast.
This change has also increased the Manitoba Water Stewardship forecast for the Souris River basin within Manitoba.
The Plum Creek at Souris increased 0.03 ft. since yesterday to 1,374.69 ft. A flood warning for all reaches of Pipestone Creek and downstream into the Oak and Plum Lake system, then on Plum Creek to the Souris River including the town of Souris remains in effect.
Assiniboine River
A revised forecast was developed for the Assiniboine River upstream of Portage la Prairie based on increased flows on the Souris and Qu’Appelle rivers.
The Assiniboine River upstream of the Souris River is forecast to experience another peak in the beginning of July.
Inflow upstream of Portage la Prairie is forecast to remain at near the current flow of 38,300 cfs for the next few days before it starts to rise in response to the large volume of water expected from the Souris River basin.
The inflow into Portage la Prairie is forecast to reach 47,000 to 53,000 cfs July 9 to 15. The lower end of the forecast range was developed for favourable conditions with no further rain and the upper end of the forecast range was developed for unfavourable conditions, and assumes 25 to 30 mm of rainfall over saturated soils for the next crest and 15 to 25 mm over saturated soils for the long-term crest. This forecast also assumes operation of the Shellmouth Reservoir to yield maximum benefit for the Assiniboine River upstream of Portage la Prairie.
The Saskatchewan Watershed Authority is forecasting another peak to occur on the Qu’Appelle River due to increased run-off from the rainfall event that occurred last week of about 11,500 cfs on July 1 but the water level should be lower than the spring crest.
Saskatchewan River
SaskPower is managing outflow and water levels of the Codette and Tobin reservoirs to mitigate the inflows coming from the North Saskatchewan River in combination with those from the South Saskatchewan River.
The flow on the Saskatchewan River was progressively increased throughout the day on Saturday to an outflow below Tobin Reservoir of 102,410 cfs (Environment Canada measurement).
The Pas sees flow attenuation due to storage in Cumberland Lake, which continues to slowly rise. Further analysis show that less attenuation will occur in Cumberland Lake than originally estimated due to the record Torch River contribution now estimated to have been 12,710 cfs on June 22.
Water levels on the Saskatchewan River at The Pas increased 0.14 ft. since yesterday to 855.53 ft., with a flow of 75,300 cfs. The forecast range for The Pas remains at 858 ft. to 859.3 ft. The water level stage of 859.3 ft. corresponds to the 100-year flood event for the Saskatchewan River at The Pas. Manitoba Water Stewardship is working closely with the Saskatchewan Watershed Authority to continually update the forecast flows. Manitoba Water Stewardship is developing a more detailed forecast for the Saskatchewan River at The Pas, which will include the trends expected for the increase in water levels leading up to the crest, as well as the recession.
Lakes
Revised forecasts were developed for Lake Manitoba and Lake St. Martin due to increased flows on the Souris and Qu’Appelle rivers. The wind-eliminated forecast levels for the lakes are as follows and are weather dependant:
• Lake Winnipeg: 717.1 ft. around end of July. (Source: Manitoba Hydro)
• Lake Winnipegosis: between 835 and 835.5 ft.
• Lake Pineimuta: between 809 and 809.3 ft. around mid-July.
• Lake Manitoba: between 817.7 and 817.81 ft. around the end of July.
• Lake St. Martin: between 806.3 and 806.4 ft. around mid-August.
• Dauphin Lake: between 860.6 and 861.2 ft. around the end of June.
Wind Set-up Alerts
A high wind set-up alert is issued for the south shore of Lake Manitoba and Lake Winnipegosis, and the south basin of Lake Winnipeg. This includes communities such as Westbourne, Twin Lakes Beach, Winnipegosis, Gimli, Victoria Beach, O’Hanly and Manigotagan.
A moderate wind set-up alert is issued for the east and west shores of south Lake Manitoba, the south shores of Dauphin Lake, and the southwest shores of Lake St. Martin. This includes communities such as Sandy Bay, Lundar Beach, Ochre Beach and Birch Bay.
For more information, see www.manitoba.ca/flooding. The most up-to-date highway information is at www.gov.mb.ca/mit/roadinfo or 1-877-MBRoads (1-877-627-6237) and on Twitter by following @MBGov.
