Two families in the Manvel, N.D., area were forced to sandbag their homes this weekend to keep rising floodwaters at bay.
Brad and Brandy Chaffee, who live along Grand Forks County Road 18 east of Manvel, and Anita Hutton, who lives near the Turtle River north of Manvel, have not been forced from their homes, however, according to Manvel Fire Chief Steve Schumer.
Family members helped to build sandbag protection at the Hutton residence.
The Chaffee property is being affected by Red River runoff. The home is located between the Red and Interstate 29. Family members and volunteers from UND helped to sandbag the home.
"The Turtle is kind of stabilizing now," Schumer said, after rising about 6 inches overnight Friday.
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Meanwhile on Saturday afternoon, water was approaching the northbound roadway of I-29, eight miles north of Manvel. Officials were warning that the water may go over the roadway and affect traffic.
Southbound I-29 traffic was reduced to a single lane Saturday afternoon about a mile south of the Harwood, N.D., north of Fargo.
More than 70 county and township roads were closed in Grand Forks County, as of Saturday afternoon, according to Emergency Manager Jim Campbell.
Forest River
U.S. Highway 81 in Minto, N.D., reopened to traffic Saturday, as the Forest River began receding. But an estimated 70 to 80 miles of county and township roads in Walsh County remained closed, according to county Emergency Manager Brent Nelson.
Walsh County Road 15, which runs from Minto through Warsaw, N.D., to I-29, remained closed, as did N.D. Highway 17 between I-29 and the Red River.
N.D. Highway 54 remains closed from I-29 to Oslo, Minn.
County officials are helping farmers living close to the Red River, east of I-29, by delivering sand and sandbags to residents.
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In Grafton, N.D., the Park River was just below flood stage Saturday and appeared to be stabilizing.
But officials expected that Walsh County Road 9, between Nash, N.D., and U.S. Highway 18 north of Grafton, was expected to close Saturday night, according to Nelson.
In Traill County, old U.S. Highway 81 on the north end of Hillsboro remains closed because of high water along the Goose River.
But the Goose River apparently has crested in Hillsboro, as well as in western Traill County. Officials said they had no reports of homes or businesses being threatened by floodwaters.
In Pembina County, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers expected to finish building a temporary levee along Main Street on Saturday, to keep ahead of the rising Red River.
The Red at Drayton was above 34 feet Saturday, and was expected to keep rising over the next week, possibly reaching 43 feet by next weekend, according to the weather service. No crest prediction has been issued yet in Drayton.
Reach Bonham at (701) 780-1110; (800) 477-6572, ext. 110; or send e-mail to kbonham@gfherald.com .
