The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has completed initial repairs on the Union Dike levee near Valley. Work on the levee started March 25. The repairs are temporary, but will address a 500-foot section of breach caused by recent flooding in the area, and will serve to prevent future flood waters from entering the affected area.
There are more than 350 miles of levees on the Missouri, Platte, and Elkhorn Rivers and tributaries that have experienced significant flood damage. There are 54 confirmed full/partial breaches and overtopppings. Due to the magnitude of damage along these levees, repair of the levee system will take an extended period of time to complete.
A risk of significant flooding continues due to the recent snowmelt and remaining snowpack across portions of North and South Dakota, especially across northeastern South Dakota and the unregulated James and Big Sioux River basins. Significant snowmelt occurred Wednesday due to warm temperatures across the Dakotas resulting in rises on already high flowing streams and rivers.
Cooler temperatures are expected into next week, however rises are likely to continue in several locations through at least the weekend due to addition snowmelt and moving of the recent snowmelt water through the system.
A storm system is moving across the Rocky Mountains and central plains through Saturday. Some of the precipitation is forecasted to fall as snow across the western basin with the majority of the precipitation across the eastern basin falling as rain. The current forecasted track of this system projects the heaviest precipitation to fall well south of the snowpack areas. The lower basin maybe snow free, however high soil moisture across this area would suggest above average runoff from any precipitation.