Moorhead, N.D., Mayor Mark Voxland declared a state of emergency Wednesday after the National Weather Service reaffirmed its prediction that the Red River will crest at 33 feet in Fargo-Moorhead.
Residents were urged to take steps to protect their private property to 34 feet.
City Manager Bruce Messelt said a handful of homeowners will need to sandbag or take other temporary measures if the river reaches 33 feet. The city didn't plan major sandbagging operations and had received no calls for assistance, he said.
The city conducted a controlled flood of Woodlawn Park to prevent rushing river water from damaging the park. Gooseberry Park also was closed.
The city planned to flood the First Avenue North underpass Wednesday evening to equalize pressure on the dike, Messelt said. The Third Street underpass by the Moorhead Center Mall and Brookdale Road under Interstate 94 also were closed.
ADVERTISEMENT
An entrance at the Hjemkomst Center will be sandbagged, and the city may have to build a temporary access road to the public housing high rise, Messelt said.
The emergency declaration puts Moorhead in a position to received state and federal aid should flood-related costs warrant a federal disaster declaration, Messelt said.
Moorhead's elevation is naturally higher than Fargo's, so its flooding concerns aren't as great, he said.
"In terms of major diking, we're not at that level yet, and we wouldn't be until we're at that 35-foot mark," he said.
Fargo has pumps in place and is prepared for 35 feet, City Engineer Mark Bittner said. "The city is pretty much on standby," he said.
Rain from a storm system moving into the area Wednesday night was expected to prolong the crest but not increase it, Bittner said.
The Red River continued its rapid rise, jumping 3.1 feet in the 24-hour span before 1 p.m. Wednesday. It was projected to rise another 3.3 feet, to 30.7 feet, by 1 p.m. today.
The weather service pushed back its 33-foot crest prediction to 1 a.m. Saturday.
ADVERTISEMENT
Bittner said the river was cresting Wednesday in Hickson, about 15 miles south of Fargo, and Hickson usually crests a day before Fargo. If the river peaks in Fargo before Saturday, the crest could be less than 33 feet, he said.
"We're hopeful that it will be a little bit lower than they're estimating," he said.
Construction crews finished an earthen dike on Second Street North east of City Hall early Wednesday to protect downtown Fargo.
Dump trucks hauled 406 loads of clay - more than 4,000 cubic yards - to build the dike, said Tim Bertschi, of the Army Corps of Engineers. The dike is about 1,100 feet long, 3-4 feet tall and 15 feet wide, he said.
"For a little levee, it's really beefed up," he said. "So if we need to go up, we could easily double the height."
Street department workers are monitoring the flood situation around the clock, said Al Weigel, Fargo Public Works operations manager.
The Forum of Fargo-Moorhead and the News Tribune are both owned by Forum Communications Co.
