Terry Schuddemat worries he will be working a lot of summerfallow this year.
The Souris River, which runs through southwestern Manitoba, swamped low-lying agricultural land last week. Schuddemat rents land along the river and figured he had about 280 acres under water as of April 15.
“If it takes three weeks to run off and another three weeks to dry up, I think it’s safe to say it’ll be recreational tillage for the summer.”
The river crested at Melita last week and was expected to crest at Souris early this week. Water levels were higher than those witnessed in 1996, but not as severe as those seen two decades earlier.
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Manitoba’s river forecast centre said some farmland close to the river will likely be under water until mid-May, even with favorable weather.
Some diking improvements were made at Melita last week to help protect low-lying areas around the community. Forecasts of additional rain or snow prompted concerns about even greater flooding.
As the river crested, high winds blasted through the Melita area, creating an added risk of dike erosion. The dikes were being patrolled to spot any weaknesses, said local emergency management co-ordinator Scott Spicer.
Meanwhile, the Red River crested at Emerson, Man., on April 14. As the peak flows surged into Manitoba from the United States, they submerged low-lying farmland south of Winnipeg.
Alf Warkentin, of the province’s water resources branch, said the flood waters were causing headaches for farmers along the river. However, he was not aware of any homes being flooded.
“The homes are high, they’re on pads, but they have water all around them.”
At some points, the Red River was almost three kilometres across. Farmers most affected by the flooding could find their seeding plans disrupted this spring, Warkentin said.
