Groups prepare for floods
With projections of well above-average
snowpacks and streamflows in the Flathead Valley, residents as well
as local emergency service officials are preparing for potential
flooding that could hit the area this spring.
High-elevation snowpack in the Flathead
River basin rose to roughly 150 percent of average Monday after
weekend snow, which is the highest it’s been since the winter of
1996-1997. That snowpack is the result of continuing cool weather
and frequent precipitation. As of the beginning of April, the
snowpack in the “Noisy Basin,” which includes the Bigfork area of
the Swan Range, was sitting at 151 percent of average.
“We’re really concerned about the
fast-reacting streams coming out of the Swan Range,” said Marty
Whitmore, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service, at a
meeting of local emergency service officials in Flathead County
earlier this month.
Local rivers and streams, including the
Flathead, Stillwater and Whitefish rivers, are expected to run
high, with the possibility of reaching flood stage. Currently the
National Weather Service is forecasting peak flows on the Flathead
River by early June, though much is contingent on the weather.
“It’s no secret that we’re looking for
high water this year,” Whitmore said.
Stephen Stanley, coordinator with Lake
County’s Office of Emergency Services, also said a lot depends on
what the weather does over the next few weeks.
“We’ve got a pretty good snowpack,” he
said. “We’ve got 110 to 157 percent of normal...What’s going to
determine this year is going to be how it comes down. If it stays
cool, we should be OK, but if it heats up and rains, we could get
some excitement.”
A group of Bigfork residents is taking
concerns into its own hands by forming a new organization titled
the Bigfork Emergency Response Team. Its goal is to educate
residents and develop plans to deal with potential threats to
Bigfork and the surrounding areas. This includes potential flooding
as well as earthquakes, wild fires and other emergency scenarios.
The first meeting to discuss the formation of a community emergency
response team took place April 3.
“We wanted to get the whole community
involved,” said resident Bruce Nelson, one of the group’s
organizers. “What we want to do is prepare for earthquakes, floods,
anything that can happen to be able to assist everybody.”
The group hopes to go as far as
organizing neighborhoods, churches and service groups in how to
respond in emergency situations and having written plans in place,
including through a website that Bigfork Web Development, Inc., is
in the process of setting up. That website will be located at
www.bigforkemergencyinfo.org.
The group has been holding
informational meetings in the area, with another planned for this
Thursday, April 21, at Bigfork Elementary School. Residents should
note that the time for that meeting has been changed from 7 p.m. to
6 p.m.
A meeting will be held at 6 p.m. the
following Tuesday, April 26, in the Bigfork High School music room
on how to prepare 72-hour emergency packs for $20. Churches are
invited to send someone who can take the information back to the
respective church. Residents can call 871-1447 or 837-0923 for more
information on the group.
To deal with current spring flooding
potential, residents can check to determine if their property is in
a flood hazard area by visiting www.fema.gov for maps in the area
or by contacting Flathead or Lake county. Those who can are
encouraged to consider getting flood insurance, which takes 30 days
to go into effect. That can be done through a home insurance
carrier or FEMA at 1-800-638-6620.
Other advised precautions residents can
take include getting materials to protect structures such as sand
bags, plastic sheeting and plywood, as well as having a 72-hour to
seven-day emergency kit that includes food, first aid and other
supplies.
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has
made sand bags available for flooding situations. The Lake County
Office of Emergency Services has staged about 30,000 of those in
the Swan area already. Flathead County currently has access to more
than 200,000 bags. Stanley is advising residents to be on the
lookout for changes and to alert his office as deemed
necessary.
“Now we wait and see,” he said. “Be
aware of your surroundings. Keep your eyes open and let us
know.”
Contact the Flathead County office at
758-5562 and the Lake County office at 883-7253.
The Northwest Montana News Network
contributed to this report.