It is the time of year when people living in the red river valley turn their attention to the rivers in anticipation of what the years flooding will bring. The predictions are quite high this year and everyone who was here for the flood of 1997 can’t help but be reminded of the days spent preparing for it.
Flooding is nothing new to the residents of Manitoba and our neighboring states of Minnesota and North Dakota but in 1997 we were all taken by surprise. Early flood predictions in 97 gave us some warning of what was to come but as the spring melt continued and the predictions were updated it became more and more dire. Then a blizzard hit at the beginning of April and the predictions surpassed all historical records.
We watched in horror as our southern neighbors succumbed to flood waters. Their dikes built for a predicted crest of 49ft gave way as the river continued to rise to an unprecedented level of 54.34 ft cresting on April 18th. Fire broke out and Grand forks was devastated. Tens of thousands of people lost their homes and it became a national disaster area. It was the beginning of the worst flooding ever seen along the Red River.
We had a great deal of sympathy for our neighbors to the south but the thought on each Manitobans mind was the fact that we were next. All that water pushing the river higher than it had ever been before was headed north. Across Manitoba it renewed the people who had already come together to sandbag and support one another to push a little harder and to get the dikes built up higher and stronger. As the rivers crest came closer the communities and farms along the river were evacuated one by one to the considered safety of Winnipeg. Towns and homes were left in the hands of military personnel. We couldn’t help but question if enough had been done, if we could have done more to guard against the rising waters and if the dikes would hold. In all 28,000 residents of southern Manitoba were sent from their homes to temporary lodging.
At this point Manitobans could do nothing but watch and wait. We all prayed for the dikes to hold and for our homes to remain safe. In the end the river damaged or destroyed 2500 homes and caused nearly 400 million dollars in damage. The communities of St Agathe and Grande Point were completely inundated with flood waters and received the worst damage.
It is thanks to the array of dike systems and river diversions that Manitoba was so well prepared for 1997. It is estimated that without those existing protections and the millions of volunteer hours the damage would have been closer to 4 billion dollars. I think Manitoba survived 1997 with an amazing sense of community and strength.
The hours I spent alongside the thousands of other volunteers sandbagging and building dikes will never be forgotten. It taught me what the strength of a community at large can accomplish, and that even when the river becomes a sea it can be turned aside.
