Environment Canada has issued a strong wind warning for Lake Manitoba and Lake Winnipegosis and a gale warning for Lake Winnipeg.
Provincial wind set-up alerts forecast for today include:
• A high wind set-up alert for the east shore and southeast corner of the south basin of Lake Manitoba. This includes communities such as Twin Lakes Beach, St. Laurent and Lundar Beach.
• A moderate wind set-up alert for the east shore of the north basin, the Narrows and a portion of the south shore of Lake Manitoba as well as the east shores of Lake Winnipeg and Oak Lake. This includes communities such as Steeprock, Vogar, Delta Beach, Victoria Beach, O’Hanly and Oak Lake Beach.
Provincial wind set-up alerts forecast for tomorrow include:
• A high wind set-up alert for the South Basin of Lake Winnipeg. This includes communities such as Gimli, Chalet Beach, Grand Marais, Victoria Beach, Traverse Bay and O’Hanly.
• A moderate wind set-up alert for the south basin of Lake Manitoba, the south shore of Lake Winnipegosis and Lake St. Martin. This includes communities such as Sandy Bay, Westbourne, Delta Beach, Twin Lakes Beach, St. Laurent, Lundar Beach, Winnipegosis and Birch Bay.
Winds on Lake Manitoba were west at 56 km/h today and are forecast to change to northwest at 37 this evening, decrease to north at 27 by tomorrow morning then veer to east at 27 tomorrow evening. Winds are forecast to increase to east at 37 km/h by Saturday.
Winds in the South Basin of Lake Winnipeg were west at 63 km/h today and are forecast to decrease somewhat to 56 this evening before changing to northwest at 37 tomorrow morning, then to northeast 27 tomorrow afternoon where they are forecast to remain through Saturday.
Winds on Lake Winnipegosis were west at 56 km/h today and are forecast to switch to northwest at 37 this evening and decrease to north at 27 after midnight where they are expected to remain unchanged until tomorrow evening when they are forecast to veer to east at 18 before diminishing to light on Saturday.
Wind set-up alert maps are available on the Manitoba Water Stewardship Flood Response webpage at www.manitoba.ca/flooding.
Some areas received heavy rainfall yesterday. The Assiniboine River Basin received 29.8 millimetres in Roblin, 35.5 mm in Regina, 37.2 mm in Brandon and 19.5 mm in Yorkton. In the Souris River basin, the community of Souris received 37.2 mm. In other basins, Dauphin received 50.5 mm, North Battleford 38.4 mm, The Pas 30.8 mm, Melfort 18.2 mm and 16.7 mm fell in Saskatoon.
An unstable weather system over most of Alberta, central and southwestern Saskatchewan, central Manitoba and parts of the U.S. portions of the Souris and Red River basins is expected to produce up to 10 mm of precipitation by Saturday morning. Localized cells are expected to result in up to 30 mm over central Manitoba as well as central and southwestern Saskatchewan, and up to 75 mm over the U.S. portion of the Souris River basin.
The Saskatchewan and Carrot rivers experienced minor rises due to the storm system that brought heavy rainfall to the region yesterday. The water levels are forecast to remain at this high level for a few days and then begin a gradual recession.
As water levels decline, rural municipalities make decisions about when it is safe for evacuees to return to their homes. Currently 2,809 Manitobans are registered as flood evacuees
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 at 1-866-367-3276 (1 866-FOR-FARM, toll-free); the Klinic Community Health Centre 24-hour crisis line at 786-8686 in Winnipeg or 1-888-322-3019 (toll-free); and Health Links-Info Santé, which can help find resources through local regional health authorities or community mental-health services offices at 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.
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, toll-free) and on Twitter by following @MBGov.
