Around 40 homes have been evacuated in Manitoba, Canada, amid fears a dam on the Little Saskatchewan River will fail.
The Rivers Dam is facing unprecedented flows following heavy rains over the last few days. Provincial and consulting engineers have indicated there is potential for a structural failure and authorities have called for evacuations in the area.
In a statement, the Manitoba Government said: “Based on engineering assessments, and out of an abundance of caution, Manitoba Infrastructure is recommending an evacuation of people and livestock from approximately 30 to 40 properties along the Little Saskatchewan River downstream of the Rivers Dam in the rural municipalities of Riverdale and Whitehead.”
The recommended evacuation comes as a weather system has brought significant precipitation in the past 72 hours in southwest and western Manitoba. Some areas have received record-high precipitation of more than 200 mm during this period.
The precipitation has caused water levels to rise in rivers and creeks in these areas. The town of Neepawa has declared a local state of emergency because of high water levels along the Whitemud River. Around 40 homes were evacuated.
Meanwhile 84 residents of the town of Minnedosa were evacuated from their homes earlier this week due to flooding after 190 mm of rain in 3 days.
