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Province of Manitoba » Water Stewardship » Water Information » Flood Forecasting Reports »
Flood Report for Southern Manitoba - April 23, 2006
Water Information
FLOOD UPDATE FOR MANITOBA
April
23, 2006.
Water levels still Rising in Some
Areas of Western Manitoba
Flood sheets
showing present conditions and an updated forecast for:
Red River,
Riding Mountain & Westlake Area,
Pembina River,
Assiniboine River and
Swan River - The
Pas Area are attached.
Weather
Red River
-
Levels of the Red River
declined about 0.2 feet at most points from Emerson to the Floodway Inlet
during the 24 hour period ending this morning. The level at Emerson fell 0.4
feet.
-
Daily declines will
continue to increase with favourable weather. The water should recede from PTH
75 north of Morris by May 2 with favourable weather.
-
The Red River level in
downtown Winnipeg this morning was 18.16 feet, about the same as yesterday.
Levels in the city are expected to remain between 17.5 and 18.5 feet for the
next two weeks.
-
The flow in the Red River
Floodway was measured this morning at 30,700 cubic feet per second (cfs) while
the flow upstream of the floodway inlet was 77,800 cfs.
Assiniboine River
-
The Assiniboine River is
presently within its banks at points downstream of Miniota to operation of
flood control works. Flooding of valley lands continues from Shellmouth Dam to
Miniota due to increased outflows from Shellmouth Reservoir combined with
local runoff from last Tuesdays rainstorm. Minor flooding could spread to
points from Virden to Grand Valley in the next few days. Levels from Miniota
to Brandon should subside somewhat next week but will rise to somewhat above
flood stage again the following week as higher flows arrive from the
Shellmouth area.
-
The water level in
Shellmouth Reservoir this morning was 1407.8 feet, which is 0.7 feet below the
spillway elevation. The reservoir inflow has been rising due to runoff from
last Tuesday’s 50 mm rainstorm in eastern Saskatchewan. The reservoir inflow
is expected to crest today and water will begin to flow over the spillway by
early tomorrow. The crest on the reservoir is expected in early May.
-
Manitoba Water Stewardship,
in consultation with the Shellmouth Reservoir Regulation Liaison Committee, is
planning to operate the reservoir to minimize the peak outflow. Controlled
conduit outflows will be maintained at 2500 cfs until the total of conduit and
spillway flows reaches 4000 cfs. The controlled conduit flow will then be
reduced day by day to maintain a total outflow of 4000 cfs if possible. This
forecast will be reviewed again today and an update will be issued tomorrow.
-
Flooding is not expected in
Brandon with the possible exception of low lying areas at Curren Park.
Locations from Brandon to Winnipeg will experience only minor rises as the
river remains well within the banks.
-
The flow in the Portage
Diversion this morning was 4540 cfs while the inflow to Portage Reservoir was
near 9450 cfs.
-
Flooding of low-lying
agricultural lands along the Shell River will continue for several weeks. The
crest of the Shell River has now reached the Inglis area.
Pembina River
-
Significant flooding
continues on the Pembina River from Rock Lake to Windygates, but levels
continue to decline. Flooding should be limited to the portion from Rock lake
to Swan lake by the middle of next week.
-
Water levels at Gretna and
at the Aux Marais crossing at the international boundary fell 0.1 feet since
yesterday. The United States National Weather Service is expecting the level
to decline close to two feet at Neche by the end of April.
Carrot and Saskatchewan
Rivers
-
The level of the
Saskatchewan River at The Pas continues to decline very slowly and no further
rise is expected with favourable weather.
-
Levels of the Carrot River
from the Saskatchewan boundary to just west of The Pas rose less than half a
foot since yesterday. Forecasted crests have been lowered by one foot.
Additional rises should be less than one foot with the crest expected on
Tuesday. Only minor flooding is expected at rural areas from the Saskatchewan
boundary to 10 miles west of The Pas. Areas near The Pas, including the
Bracken Dam area will see little further rise and no flooding.
-
Agricultural lands in the
Pasquia River Valley near The Pas continue to be flooded and pumping continues
to reduce levels. The flooding is much less than that of last summer.
Red Deer River and Swan
River
-
A record high crest on the
Red Deer River has now reached Manitoba. The river crested in eastern
Saskatchewan several days ago at flows nearly twice as great as previous
record highs. Levels are two to three feet above historical records.
Landowners along the river have been advised to take appropriate actions to
protect property.
-
The extreme flows on the
Red Deer River are raising Red Deer Lake to levels far beyond previous highs.
The lake was at 867.5 feet this morning, which is 2.5 feet higher than during
the flood of 1979. Strong north winds last night caused higher levels and wave
action, resulting in some dike failures. Most resident of the community of Red
Deer Lake have departed as the access road is now severely flooded and closed
to traffic. Staff of Manitoba EMO, Manitoba Conservation, Manitoba Water
Stewardship and Manitoba Aboriginal and Northern Affairs are still at the
scene to assist.
-
The second crest on the
Swan River due to last weeks rain passed through Swan River late April 21 and
levels continue to decline.
-
The crest on the Little
Saskatchewan River has reached Minnedosa and is not producing any
difficulties.
Hydrologic Forecast Centre,
Water Branch,
Manitoba Water Stewardship
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