Red River crest expected in Manitoba between April 8 and 15

Flood forecasters say they expect the Red River to begincresting in Manitoba later this week at a volume that should only result in localized flooding.

The U.S. National Weather Service expects the Red to crest on Wednesday at Pembina, N.D., nearthe Canada-U.S. border.

Manitoba's hydrologic forecast centre expects the Red to crest between Emerson, Man., and Winnipeg sometime between this Friday andthe following Friday, April 15.

The river is expected to spill over its banks at some locations, forecasters said. The peak volume of the spring flood is expected to be somewhere between 45,000 and 57,000 cubic feet per second south of Winnipeg at the Red River Floodway inlet.

That's roughly one third the volume of the Flood of the Century in 1997, when the river peaked at 138,000 cubic feet per second south of the floodway.

The province says the floodway maybe put to use, provided river ice moves off in time.

The Red River in Winnipeg is nonetheless expected to peak somewhere between 17.3 and 18.3 feet above normal winter ice level at James Avenue.

That level straddles the line between a minor and moderate flood in the city. Only 16 low-lying city properties have been identified as potentially being at risk, the City of Winnipeg said last week.

As of Monday evening, the Red in Winnipeg had risen to 15.5 feet James.

No significant flooding is expected this spring along the Assiniboine River, Souris River or Pembina River, the province said.