By Jared Stranberg
Concerns are rising for potential flooding in the Midwest this coming spring.
Omaha has already received as much as 6.41 inches of rain this month, over twice the average reported rainfall for Nebraska in September.
Mills County Emergency Management Director Larry Hurst told KMTV that the current flood waters need to fall 10 feet, fast.
“If that doesn’t happen this fall, late fall, before it freezes, then this water is going to be in the ground frozen,” Hurst said. “It’s going to be on the surface frozen.”
This frozen surface water could melt during the spring thaw. Corina Zhang, the resident engineer for the flood recovery mission in Omaha, also said that floods could happen this spring.
“In any year, there’s a likelihood of rains or cold weather,” Zhang said. “A lot of people probably remember the last winter, and that could be another winter that we see.”
After the most recent flooding this month, Zhang said that the flood recovery mission has gone from recovering to fighting floods. Building up structures and preventing erosion to prevent losing what they have recovered is their current goal.
Bret Budd, chief of the Omaha Systems Restoration Team, said the forecasted weather isn’t good for dealing with the floods at hand.
“Going into the first part of October, we’ve got a lot of rain coming,” Budd said. “It’s going to be wet. It stayed wet. There are frost advisories just northwest of us through the basin. That’s less than ideal.”
Budd also mentioned forecasted record snowfalls in states with tributaries to the Missouri River, which would contribute to the current rainwater that could freeze before it can dry. Budd said that all of this precipitation is preventing both the flood recovery teams and Nebraska as a whole from catching the break it needs. If the current rainwater freezes before it dries and then compounds with the winter snowfall, this coming spring doesn’t bode well for areas around the Missouri River.
If Nebraska does sustain floods in the spring, Zhang offered a few words for families that could be affected.
“In any sort of emergency response, have a good communication plan with your family,” Zhang said. “If something does happen, [know] where you’re going to meet.”
She also suggested having food and supplies stored in a place that would not be compromised. Things like warm clothing, non-perishable food and a method of communication are key to dealing with these emergencies effectively.
Lastly, she advised everybody to take a breath.
“A tip that has helped me is to remain calm,” Zhang said. “Everything is fixable. Everything can be addressed. Sometimes some problems take longer than others, but know that everybody’s looking out for each other. Everybody’s in the fight together.”
