Spring Flood Outlook - Valley News Live - KVLY/KXJB - Fargo/Grand Forks

Spring Flood Outlook

  River levels across our region, like the Red in Grand Forks are at low levels compared to the average. We had a dry fall and so far, a fairly dry winter.

  The National Weather Service says the snow pack around Fargo and Grand Forks contains less than an inch of water. And their long term forecast calls for lower than average precipitation, at least until we get to March.

Dave Kallenbenz, Weather Service: "We would lean toward the lower side of normal, even into February. When March comes around it's always a challenging time, because the patterns could change and we could get more moisture up in this area.

   But, the experts say we shouldn't start worrying about having to throw sandbags yet. The current flood forecast calls for a low chance of any major flooding this spring.

Mike Lukes, Flood Forecaster: "According to analysis, there's less than a 10-percent chance of major flooding across the Red River Basin… for moderate flooding, about a 20-percent chance."

  However, Lukes says as usual, it's all going to come down to what happens in March.

Mike Lukes: "How much snow pack we have and how much water is in that snow pack and how that melts. And during the snow melt time period… if we do have rain on snow or frozen ground."

  It's all part of our region's delicate dance with Spring, that's up next on the calendar.

   The Weather Service's latest, Spring flood forecast is scheduled to be released next week, during a meeting of the Red River Water Basin board in Grand Forks.