County prepared for river flooding

With the Flathead River predicted to pass flood stage today and Thursday, Sheriff Chuck Curry said the county is poised and ready to respond if necessary.

“I think we’re as prepared as we have ever been historically should we have an issue or should we have a problem,” Curry said Tuesday.

Curry said the Flathead River is rising at Leisure Island and that some residents have made plans to leave. No homes currently are threatened, but a portion of Leisure Drive is open to local traffic only as water has covered a portion of the road, he said.

“That’s not unanticipated and it’s certainly not a big surprise to people who live there,” Curry said.

Another issue has been with Trumble Creek, which runs through a culvert under Glacier Park International Airport’s main runway.

Curry said airport workers used an excavator to move dirt and make a channel for water as the culvert became blocked with debris on Monday.

“That appears to have been successful,” Curry said.

County officials will continue to monitor Flathead River water levels as the National Weather Service predicts it will spill out of its banks today and possibly through Friday in some places.

The Middle Fork is expected to reach several inches above flood stage today. The Flathead River at Columbia Falls is predicted to reach flood stage tonight and remain at that level through early Friday morning, according to the Weather Service.