Flood officially over

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 11/08/2014 (3691 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

With the Assiniboine River level dropping to 1,172 feet this morning, the summer’s flood is officially over.

It’s been in flood stage for more than a month, since crossing that same threshold in late June, after a record-breaking month of rainfall throughout the watershed swelled the river to never-before-seen heights.

Although the Assiniboine is still a foot over its banks in some low-lying areas and floodwaters have yet to completely drain or dry up, the river has dropped more than 11 feet since its peak in early July.

The river’s level is offiially measured in feet above sea level at the First Street Bridge. The river’s bottom is at about 1,160 feet above sea level and it would normally be about seven feet deep at this time of year.

Also this morning, Grand Valley Road re-opened to traffic. It was closed in early July as crews built a clay-and-rock dike across it at 18th Street North and Kirkcaldy Drive to hold back the river.

After the dike was taken down last week, the roadway underneath had to be repaved.

With the river sinking down out of flood phase and Grand Valley Road re-opened, the Brandon Sun will be "sunsetting" its official flood-fight online section, which was at brandonsun.com/flood. Although stories there will remain archived and available through searches, the page will no longer be live.