County increases sandbag supply
High water on the Flathead River surrounds islands near the confluence of the Stillwater River south of Kalispell. The Stillwater is in the upper left corner of the photo.
Additional bags and sand have been placed at several more sites around Flathead County as emergency services officials prepare for potential flooding.
Bags now are available at the Columbia Falls Police Department, the Bigfork fire station, the Ferndale fire hall, the Marion fire station and the Evergreen fire hall.
Most of those sites also have sand available, said Scott Sampey, director of the county Office of Emergency Services. But in Columbia Falls, sand is at the fire station next to the police station.
The county got another 115,000 bags from the Army Corps of Engineers this week, Sampey said. County officials are trying to get bags and sand delivered around the county so the public can get the materials.
“We’re not sure where flooding could occur,” Sampey said, “so we are spreading them out to people in places where they may be needed.”
Sand and bags are also at fire halls in West Glacier and Creston, but materials at those two sites aren’t yet available to the public, Sampey said. County employees are using the sandbags to protect infrastructure.
Sampey credited a great volunteer turnout in West Glacier on Tuesday for keeping water out of some houses. He said almost 40 people showed up to help fill and place sandbags on Riverbend Road, a low-lying area that floods frequently.
“We couldn’t believe how fast the work was done,” Sampey said.
Gauges on rivers in the county all showed levels below flood stage on Thursday, Sampey said.
Steady rains on Thursday added to the water situation in the Flathead Valley, although low temperatures may have compensated by limiting snow melt.
As of Thursday afternoon, the National Weather Service recorded .70 inches of precipitation at Glacier Park International Airport, .83 inches at West Glacier, .89 inches west of Kalispell and 2.1 inches at Noisy Basin, a high-elevation site that still contains 66.1 inches of water in a substantial snowpack.
Emergency personnel were keeping an eye on the Stillwater and Flathead rivers, both of which are predicted to rise above flood stage today.
Reports to Sampey’s office show that Ashley Creek levels have “gone down a little. That’s good news,” he said.
But the water level in Star Meadow “is still incredibly high,” Sampey said. “That’s probably helping the Stillwater because some of the water is dumping into Star Meadow” instead of flooding elsewhere along the river.
Other areas of concern include the Middle Fork at West Glacier, the Flathead at Columbia Falls and Evergreen, the Whitefish River near Kalispell and the entire Stillwater, he said.
“While widespread flooding is not predicted, flash flooding could occur,” Sampey said. Flash flooding can occur when a large amount of rain falls in a short period or from debris blocking waterways. “The latter is more likely in the Flathead Valley and emergency workers continue to monitor and break up log jams as needed,” he said.
Sampey pointed out that essentially every inch of a river has a different flood stage, “depending on how high the ground is there and how deep the river is at that site.” Topography changes along a river and that affects flood levels, he said.
Some but not all Evergreen residents who were displaced by floodwaters from the Stillwater River last week have been able to return to their homes, Sampey said. Not all of the septic systems in the flooded areas are operable. Now those people are dealing with mosquito problems.
Parts of Evergreen are especially prone to flooding, Sampey said, but this year some advance sandbagging diverted water from areas that typically flood.
Sampey was aware of 20 flooded properties in Evergreen, with 12 of those homes being evacuated at least temporarily.
“We don’t want people to panic,” Sampey said. “These are predictions, not absolutes and we have no predictions for mass flooding. We’re very we’re lucky compared to much of the state, of course not those people who have water in their houses, but our general area.”
Sampey reminds county residents that information about flood preparation and flooding predictions are available on his office’s website at http://flathead.mt.gov/oes.
Instructions about how to fill and use sandbags can be found at www.nwk.usace.army.mil/Flood/NWD_Sandbag_Pamphlet.pdf.
The emergency services office continues to update its flood hotline, which can be called 24 hours a day. The number is 758-2111.
Reporter Shelley Ridenour may be reached at 758-4439 or sridenour@dailyinterlake.com.