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Upper Midwest flooding

Second crests loom as warmer weather speeds snowmelt

Updated: April 5, 2011 - 3:26 PM

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Flooding on the St. Croix River swamped most of Stillwater�s Lowell Park last week.

Photo: Kevin Giles, Star Tribune

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SECOND CRESTS MAY BE HIGHER THAN FIRST

While the Minnesota, St. Croix and Mississippi rivers crested last week, second crests, in some cases higher than the first, are forecast for this week as warmer weather accelerates snowmelt.

At St. Paul, the Mississippi has been dropping from its Thursday crest, but after falling off 2 feet by Monday, it is expected to rise even higher than its original crest by next weekend. Also by the weekend, the St. Croix at Stillwater is projected to rise a foot and a half higher than the level it reached last week, again raising the possibility that the Stillwater Lift Bridge might have to close. The South Fork of the Crow River at Delano, down Sunday nearly 3 feet from its March 28 crest, is expected to bounce back even higher by Friday.

Little rain or snow was forecast for the metro area Sunday night into Monday, and little is expected through the week, so the flood forecast should not change much.

Meanwhile, a Red River Valley storm was forecast to bring far less snow than anticipated Sunday, followed by dry weather. Nevertheless, the Red is on a steep and steady rise and is projected to rise 15 feet at Fargo-Moorhead by Sunday, to 37.1 feet, its seventh-highest level, and to continue rising.

BILL MCAULIFFE

about this series
An early spring and a rapid snow melt forced communities in Minnesota and North Dakota to quicken their flood fighting efforts.

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