Sunday, April 02, 2006

Red River rising

Time to go to the Dome?
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7 comments:

My Frontier Thesis said...

I get a little nervous about this time of year: I'm in a half-below-ground-level apartment, and so is my library and iMac.

This goddamned river floods all the time, some years worth remembering more than others.

4/02/2006 10:00 PM
Tecumseh said...

By the way, why is it called Red River? Looks dull grayish to me...

4/02/2006 10:22 PM
My Frontier Thesis said...

In this photo the Red looks grey, but it mostly runs a reddish-brown; and the river runs north, eventually making it into Hudson Bay.

4/03/2006 1:55 AM
My Frontier Thesis said...

From Kevin Dean, Grand Forks City Information Office:

The City of Grand Forks is taking a proactive approach to make sure the community is properly prepared and adequately protected from the rising level of the Red River. The latest National Weather Service forecast is projecting a crest on the Red River of approximately 47 feet on Thursday, April 6.

The Point Bridge will be closed to traffic at 4 p.m. today and the Greenway Trail entrance along Elmwood Drive will also be closed this afternoon, as crews install the closure. Crews are also expected to close DeMers Avenue at the Sorlie Bridge and the entrance to Lincoln Drive Park early this week.

Mayor Michael Brown will issue an emergency declaration in conjunction with Grand Forks County officials on Monday, April 3. This action will allow the City access to state and federal funds and resources, should they be needed. “It’s important for us to plan prudently in this flood fight,” said Brown. “We need to be proactive with our approach, especially with projections of additional rain later this week, rather than waiting to see what might or might not happen to the river level.”

Crews continue to haul clay to construct several temporary levee closures in sections of the Permanent Flood Protection project that have yet to be completed. Those locations include:

1.) Near RDO Foods on the north side of Grand Forks Areas north and south of Gateway Drive
2.) near Riverside Manor Areas
3.) near Riverside Park
4.) The floodwall behind the Myra Museum Downtown Grand Forks - behind The Chamber.

The top of the temporary levee closures will be set at 54 feet. Motorists should be aware that streets in those construction areas will be muddy and heavy equipment will be operating during the time the work is underway. City officials are reminding residents to stay clear of construction areas for their own safety and because sightseers may slow the
progress of the work that’s underway.

Residents are also reminded to make sure sump pumps are draining outside to the storm sewers, instead into the sanitary sewers indoors. Using sump pumps properly will help prevent the (click here for Dave Barry Lift Station No. 16 and other interesting G.F. tidbits) sanitary sewer system from getting overworked and will reduce the chances of sewage backup in homes. The City is not anticipating any specific sewer problems from the flood. However, it’s always a good idea to have floor drain plugs available.

4/03/2006 12:06 PM
Mr roT said...

I hope Mayor Nagin will be there to help direct these efforts. They sound complicated.

4/03/2006 4:17 PM
Tecumseh said...

Do they have a Dome in Grand Forks? And, by the way, are these forks in the Red River, or what?

4/03/2006 8:40 PM
My Frontier Thesis said...

There's not really a "dome" proper in G.F. There is a large convention building, but we're living in the flattest of flat areas, the Red River Valley. The safest (or most immediate) place to get away from the water is interstate 29 because it's raised. But then one is exposed to the elements.

When floods happen, the flood destroys quite a bit but has the simultaneous ability to mobilize the town (for example, during the 1997 flood, volunteers came in to move all the archival material out of one of UND's main humanities library basements; and G.F. highschool and university students sandbagged for who knows how many days).

4/03/2006 11:39 PM

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