Flooding in North Dakota, April 10 to 30, 1996

Moderate to severe flooding occurred on the Red River of the North and many of its tributaries in North Dakota. Above normal precipitation was observed over the basin for the 6 months prior to the flood. In addition, heavy snow cover, with drifts up to 12 feet, lingered into early April. This combined with a rapid snowmelt to produce a memorable spring flood, despite below average precipitation from mid-March through April. Ice jams contributed to the flooding, particularly along the Pembina River near the Canadian border. The flooding was, for many areas, the worst since 1979, which for some, was the most devastating on record. In Grand Forks, the fifth highest state was recorded. On April 19th at 7 pm, a 19 yr. old man from Warroad, MN drowned while attempting to cross the Robin bridge over the Red River at Drayton, ND. The man unfortunately did not heed a road closed sign, which clearly maked the flooding hazard. Residents along the Sheyenne River wer hit particularly hard. At Kindred, ND, a flood disaster was declared by Gov. Schafer. The governor activated the National Guard to assist with the flood, In Grafton, the Park River swamped a mobile home court and flooded many basements in the city. On the Red River, the most extensive damage was from Grand Forks downstream. Many roads and bridges, including I-29 just north of Grand Forks, were closed.