Peguis to get $1.5M from province for flood measures

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Keith Sinclair, Peguis First Nation's assistant emergency co-ordinator, stands in flood water from the Fisher River. Behind him, a sandbag dike protects Ron Spence's home.

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The Manitoba government will pump $1.5 million into the flood fight at Peguis First Nation.

The money will be used by the community to obtain additional flood-fighting equipment, Emergency Measures Organization Minister Steve Ashton said.

Peguis, on the Fisher River, has been hardest hit this spring by high water. As of today, 543 of 647 people displaced by flooding this are from Peguis.

Premier Greg Selinger toured the community today.

Also on the flood front, officials said colder weather and snow this weekend will delay the spring melt, and they will re-evaluate early next week the impact of that extra precipitation on flood levels.

River levels remain high across western Manitoba and the Red and Assiniboine Rivers are expected to rise more in the next few days.

Meanwhile, flood-preparedness assessments continue in at St-Lazare as water rises on the the Qu'Appelle and Assiniboine rivers.

At Spruce Woods Provincial Park Thursday, the cage barrier dikes placed along PTH 5 were overtopped by a significant rise of water caused by an ice jam. Flood water hit a number of areas of the campground including washroom facilities.The park's main interpretive centre and some other buildings have not been affected and are intact.

A clay dike on the east side of Ashern is now being reinforced and 20 homes with limited access are being sandbagged and provided with pumps because of overland flooding.

One family has been removed from their residence in the RM of Ritchot south of Winnipeg after losing road access from their property due to overland flooding.

Nearby, Highway 75 at Morris remains open, monitored for possible closure on a day-by-day basis.

There are now 72 sections of road affected by flood waters, with 37 roads closed or limited to local traffic and 24 under caution or have one-lane of traffic.

For more information, click here to go to the government flood website (click here).

Up-to-date highway information is at www.gov.mb.ca/mit/roadinfo.  and on Twitter by following @MBGov.