'Stubborn' ice jams, rising Red River levels cause concerns in Selkirk

The mayor of Selkirk, Man., says ice jams and floods east and north of the Interlake city have people on edge.

Levels continue to rise, pushing large hunks of ice north through the city.

Selkirk Mayor Larry Johannson said the conditions remind him of the spring of 2007.

"It was sunny, it was a year exactly like this where the water went down even a little bit, there wasn't a lot of snow cover," Johannson said. "But it turned on us and the north winds were brutal."

Highway 204 between Highway 509 and Highway 212 was closed in the East Selkirk area Saturday and remains under water. The Selkirk Bridge closed over the weekend due to rising waters; ice jams and river levels have also inched up beneath the Highway 4 bridge north of Selkirk.

• Rising Red River, ice jams close roads and bridges near Selkirk
• ​Flood closes section of Highway 204 near East Selkirk

Both bridges were closed for close to two weeks in the spring of 2007 for the same reason, Johannson said.

"The temperatures dropped dramatically. The north wind was relentless and the water kept coming. It started to come from the south and it came heavy and it did a lot of damage in our parks, in our waterfront, our seniors' blocks," he said.

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• Wall of ice destroys Manitoba homes, cottages in 2007
• Nervous watch continues on icy Red River

The fact that temperatures continue to drop below the 0 C mark also makes him nervous, he added.

"Not the way we want it to go. I mean, the ice is funny," he said. "You can take a drive on a Saturday night and you can look and you know it's broken up, but you think, 'Man, it's jammed up pretty good.' And you can go on a Sunday morning and it's out to the marsh area, but it's being stubborn right now. It's not going yet, it's still hanging around."

The City of Selkirk said on its website Sunday that the river has breached its banks and crews are preparing to fight flooding by putting up barricades in the most at-risk areas.

The city is asking residents to stay away from the river banks and to remain behind city barricades for their own safety.