Grand Forks shores up levees as Red River rises

Families have evacuated flooded farms near the Red River in North Dakota     ON THE NEWS Jeff Flock: Flood prevention activities in South Dakota

GRAND FORKS, North Dakota (CNN) -- Bulldozers and dump trucks worked to reinforce levees Tuesday as the city devastated by 1997 floods again watched the water of the Red River rising.

Approaching rain and melting snow are expected to push rivers in North Dakota and Minnesota higher by the end of the week, so crews in Grand Forks worked to build levees capable of holding back a 54-foot crest. The river hit 43 feet early Tuesday.

Four years ago, the Red River overflowed its banks and caused devastating damage in what was dubbed "the flood of the century" in North Dakota and Minnesota. The National Weather Service predicted the river would crest at 46 feet Friday at Grand Forks, well above its flood stage of 28 feet.

VIDEO CNN's Jeff Flock reports from the Ottertail River in Breckenridge, Minnesota Play video (QuickTime, Real or Windows Media) Correspondent Julie Borgen talks with people piling up the sandbags and reminiscing about the flood four years ago Play video (QuickTime, Real or Windows Media)   CNN WEATHER FORECASTS Wahpeton, ND Fargo, ND Grand Forks, ND Breckenridge, MN

"We're watching and waiting at this point," Grand Forks city spokesman Peter Haga said Monday. "Although we sustained large damage four years ago, we've learned some lessons from that and we're sitting at a pretty comfortable level at this point."

Some farm fields have been flooded, but no one has yet been forced to leave their homes in Grand Forks -- a far cry from 1997, when authorities ordered the entire population of about 50,000 to evacuate.

The 1997 floods pushed the Red River up to just over 54 feet -- and amid the flooding, a fire broke out in the city's downtown that burned several buildings already damaged by rising water. Hundreds of buildings in Grand Forks were condemned once the river receded.

While workers built up levees in Grand Forks, similar preparations were under way in Fargo, about 80 miles south.

"Right now we're thinking it's going to come on Wednesday and Thursday," Fargo Mayor Bruce Furness said. "If that happens, that would be better than having it come today. We're in the process of building some dikes that we'll finish up today. We need to get those in place before the rain or the crest hits."

Fargo also took preventive measures after the flood four years ago, buying out 52 homes along the river. "So there's fewer people living along the river than in '97," Furness said.

In Breckenridge, Minnesota, about 50 miles south of Fargo, the water has dropped since Monday -- but officials expect it to rise again in the coming days. The river could reach 19 feet around Wahpeton and Breckenridge, nine feet above flood stage, but Breckenridge Mayor Cliff Barth said his town is prepared for floods up to 22 feet.

"Right now, schools and businesses are going as usual. No problem," he said.

CNN Correspondent Jeff Flock contributed to this report.

Cities along Red River prepare for floods
April 9, 2001
Minnesota, Dakotas pile sandbags against rising rivers
April 8, 2001
Midwest storm knocks out power, floods homes
April 7, 2001

Grand Forks, North Dakota
  • Spring 2001 Preparation & Flood Fight
North Dakota Division of Emergency Management
City of Fargo - Public Works/ Operations
National Weather Service
UM Weather (University of Michigan)

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