April 9, 2001 - The Minnesota River is expected to crest seven-feet above flood stage on Saturday in Granite Falls. The town has constructed an emergency levee across the street from City Hall and is suplementing that with sandbags. Bill Lavin is the city manager of Granite Falls. He says the town needs lots of volunteers to help:
April 9, 2001 - The city of Crookston narrowly avoided disaster early this morning when ice jams caused the Red Lake River to jump two feet in a matter of minutes. The river is *now* slowly dropping, but city officials are concerned waterlogged levees may fail if rain later this week pushes the river higher again. Mainstreet Radios Dan Gunderson reports.
April 10, 2001 - Flood fighters across Minnesota are watching the river, and the skies. With a lot of rain in the forecast, river crest projections have been raised across the region. Along the Red River in the north, devastated by the flood of 1997, officials say they are confident they can handle the higher water levels, although some will add a couple more feet to their dikes. Along the Minnesota River and the Mississippi, where communities had problems in 97, but on a lesser scale, there's now greater concern. National Weather Service Hydrologist Gary McDevitt says taking projected rainfall over the next few days into account, there could be record water levels.
April 10, 2001 - Minnesotans in several areas of the state are fighting to keep their homes and cities dry today. State safety officials say water levels are quickly meeting levels last seen during the major floods of 1997. The main trouble areas are in the Red River Valley. In Breckenridge the river could reach 19 feet, which is 9 feet above flood stage. The situation is improving in Crookston, where the Red Lake River has crested at just over 26 feet and is dropping. Communities along the Minnesota River are expecting crests later this week. In Montevideo, Mayor Jim Curtiss has put out a call for volunteers to help fill 25-thousand sandbags. He says so far, the response has been only fair.
April 10, 2001 - Minnesota director of Emergency Management and MnDOT are examining the floods and what potential problems that could arise.
April 11, 2001 -
April 11, 2001 -
April 11, 2001 - CONTAINS DATED MATERIAL! Flooding is creating major problem in parts of the Twin Cities, especially in the east metro where the St. Croix and Mississippi rivers crest projections continue to increase. As the water rises municipal crews along with growing numbers of volunteers are beefing up dikes and levees, pumping flood water BACK into rivers AND filling thousands of sandbags. The Stillwater lift bridge over the St. Croix is also closed.
April 11, 2001 - The Mississippi River is among more than a dozen waterways on an environmental group's list of the nation's most endangered rivers released today (Wednesday). Washington D-C based American Rivers ranks the Mississippi as the sixth most threatened river in the country. Environmentalists in Minnesota say the threats posed to the Mississippi are also helping exacerbate flooding. Minnesota Public Radio's Art Hughes reports.
April 12, 2001 - People along the Red River are bracing for more rain, and working to build levees higher in anticipation of rising water. Heavy rain is forcing the release of water from lake traverse, on the South Dakota border. That water will flow into the Red River, further exacerbating the situation. In Grand Forks and East Grand Forks the scene reminds some of the uncertainty that surrounded the devastating flood of 1997. The communities still don't have a permanent levee system, but city officials say the work they've done since 1997 provides much improved flood protection. Minnesota Public Radio's Dan Gunderson reports