River Update #6 - South Sask. Still Rising But Crest Is Coming Soon

A flooded pathway under the Trans-Canada bridge near the Harlow neighbourhood in Medicine Hat on Thursday morning. (Photo Alex McCuaig)

The South Saskatchewan River at Medicine Hat surpassed the 1,500 cubic metre a second mark early Thursday and is continuing to rise.

But that will likely begin to shift by Friday as upstream levels on the Oldman River have crested at Lethbridge and are now beginning to recede. The Oldman recording station at the confluence with the Bow River has remained consistent at a little more or less than 800 m³/s between Wednesday afternoon and mid-day Thursday.

Streamflows on the Oldman at Lethbridge have dropped more than 100 m³/s between mid-morning Wednesday and Thursday with the river running at 625 m³/s.

It’s a little different story on the Bow River as releases from the Bassano Dam were steady around the 850 m³/s, were reduced but are climbing again mid-day Thursday.

No major flooding is expected in Medicine Hat, though, some low-lying trails in Harlow and Riverside neighbourhoods are underwater with a number of city parks along the South Saskatchewan River either closed or have restricted access.

The year-to-date streamflow chart from the Environment Canada monitoring station in Medicine Hat. (Government of Alberta)