The province said Thursday the recent flood on the Assiniboine River at Portage la Prairie has been determined to be a one-in-350-year event. Officials also raised concerns Thursday that storms could cause a rise in water levels once more.
Because of recent storms and more in the forecast, the water levels could spike once more on the river over the next seven to 10 days and conditions will need to be continuously monitored, said the province.
"We're on a high state of alert again and our flood defences will clearly be pushed to the limit. We are already putting in place various initiatives to deal with that, but we will be watching very carefully over the next number of days because what does transpire with that major storm will once again challenge us in the province," said Steve Ashton, the province's minister of emergency measures.
Because of high flows on the Portage Diversion channel, evacuation alerts will be reissued by the RM of Portage la Prairie to 45 homes near the channel.
Some residents said they were caught off guard by the returning threat of rising water levels.
"We thought we were through the worst of it and we got rid of our sandbags," said Mark Peters.
Work has resumed to reinforce the Assiniboine River dikes and on the Portage Diversion channel, said provincial officials.
There's also a possibility the province may need to re-open a previously closed deliberate dike breach.
Work continues to guard against rising water levels in a number of communities along Lake Manitoba. The province said sandbags are being delivered to assist communities in areas such as Dauphin Lake and Ochre Beach.
- with a report from CTV's Jillian Taylor
