First Street North partially closed as river peaks

The Assiniboine River continued its gradual rise through Sunday, prompting the closure of northbound traffic on First Street North and leaving Grand Valley Road under water.

As of 7 a.m, Sunday, the river level at First Street measured 1,179.23 feet, an increase of 1.62 feet over the previous 24 hours. The City of Brandon said the river is expected to peak today and that crews continue to monitor dikes, lift stations and other flood protection around the clock.

By Sunday afternoon, rising water had forced the closure of northbound First Street North. Traffic was directed in both directions using the southbound lane, where water has already covered portions of the road.

Motorists are asked to use extreme caution, allow extra travel time and consider alternate routes. Brandon Transit riders are also expected to experience delays because of the traffic changes.

Mayor Jeff Fawcett said the city remains on track with flood forecasts, and no evacuations have been required.

“The forecast on the river has been very accurate, and it is where it was expected,” Fawcett told the Sun on Sunday afternoon. “We do expect just a little bit of a rise still, but that’s well within what we were expecting.”

He said city staff continue to inspect dikes, check lift stations and respond to changing conditions throughout the flood protection system.

Despite the rising water, Fawcett confirmed no residents have been evacuated from their homes.

“Everybody is aware that it could happen, but no, nobody has been evacuated,” he said. “Staff continues to monitor everything in our system, and should anything be needed, it would be brought forward.”

Fawcett expected the river to rise about another foot before reaching its crest sometime late Sunday or today. He said the river may remain near its peak for several days before it starts to recede.

“The monitoring continues on everything because there’s that pressure on the dike,” Fawcett said. “It impacts things like the lift stations. It impacts First Street, obviously. We’ll continue to do a lot of monitoring, and the weather has to continue to work with us.”

He credited favourable weather conditions with helping the city’s flood response so far.

“We’ve been very fortunate with the weather,” he said.

Although this is Fawcett’s first major flood as mayor, he said his previous experience as a city councillor representing riverside neighbourhoods has prepared him for the situation.

“The staff and our team are doing all the work,” Fawcett said. “If I get information, I’m relaying it to the team that acts on it as quickly as possible.”

He praised city employees, contractors and emergency personnel for strengthening flood defences under changing conditions, and Brandon residents for taking the flood threat seriously.

“They’ve respected the dikes, supported staff and contractors, asked good questions, shown preparedness and respected the river.”

For residents living closest to the river, Sunday’s conditions have brought back memories of previous floods.

Alan Nickel, who has lived on the 3000 block of MacDonald Avenue for 18 years, said floodwater has reached his property’s storage area but remains well below the levels seen during Brandon’s major floods in 2011 and 2014.

“I think the city is doing everything they can,” Nickel told the Sun. “I’m surprised that they’re adding on to the dikes, but it’s good. I think they’re doing the right thing.”

Although some cleanup may be necessary, Nickel said he is not overly concerned.

“It was about four or five feet higher than that in 2011 and 2014,” he said. “I understand it’s not going to go as high as that, so it shouldn’t really affect us a whole lot. A little bit of work, but no big deal.”

City officials say they will issue regular flood updates as conditions change and monitor flood protection infrastructure until river levels begin to fall.

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