Red River is on the rise again

[mercedeslove]

Could spell trouble for the EB maybe. How soon would Amtrak take action and bus people or reroute the EB.

http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/articl...DxliOQD9EEMD7O0

 

[PetalumaLoco]

Flood cams already.

Fargo flood cam.

 

[Cristobal]

Flood cams already. Fargo flood cam.

I saw on the news here this morning that they are predicting that the Red River will peak on Saturday at 20 feet over flood level.

Is this a common concern for the EB this time of year?

 

[AAARGH!]

Is this a common concern for the EB this time of year?

Yup.

 

[jmbgeg]

Is this a common concern for the EB this time of year?

Yup.

I am taking the EB SPK-SEA on the 26th. I hope there are no service interuptions next week related to Midwest flooding.

 

[boxcar479]

I willbe leaving PDX - Chi on 3/25. could this affect my trip? How? What will they do if the river floods? :unsure:

 

[ALC Rail Writer]

I willbe leaving PDX - Chi on 3/25. could this affect my trip? How? What will they do if the river floods? :unsure:

Sometimes they can re-route the train and it will make it between CHI and PDX/SEA... Sometimes they'll terminate the train between the flooded areas and bus people between the flooded areas.

 

[Guest]

If they detour past the flooded cities (which I hear is common), how much longer does this add onto the trip?

-andrew

 

[Ispolkom]

If they detour past the flooded cities (which I hear is common), how much longer does this add onto the trip?
-andrew

Little if nothing, unless there are slow orders because of flooding that isn't serious enough to close the route. The Surrey cut-off, the detour used, bypasses Grand Forks, Devils Lake, and Rugby by using a more direct route between Fargo and Minot. This year, though, Grand Forks is given a relatively low probability of serious flooding, so the cut-off might not be needed.

In east St. Paul the Empire Builder runs along the foot of Indian Mounds Bluff. It's separated from the Mississippi River by Warner Road. Starting Saturday Warner Road will be closed because of high water on the Mississippi. I certainly hope this is being done from an excess of caution, and that this won't affect rail traffic.

From this article I think that they intend to use the tracks further west (where they are higher) as a makeshift dike to protect part of downtown. I'll walk down at lunch today and take a look.

 

[saxman]

It really also depends on how bad the flooding is in Fargo, because that is where the Builder actually crosses the Red River. Between Grand Forks and Fargo, the rail line runs parallel to IH-29 and is several miles from the river. So as long as it stays within those few miles, you'll be ok. I remember living in GFK in 2006 and the river got very high up that way. Driving down I-29 was like driving across a huge lake, with water on both sides. Yet the road was still open and the tracks next to it (which Amtrak uses) was still in use. And I'm almost sure the train was able to get through that year. It all just depends how bad Fargo gets and the farther north the ice jams, the better.