Flood in Maine, April 1 to 3, 2000

An ice jam which formed along the Aroostook River in the vicinity of Fort Fairfield during the morning of March 31st caused elevated river levels through much of April 3rd. The ice jam initially formed near the bridge crossing the Aroostook River. The jam then broke-up and re-formed as it migrated downriver to the impoundment area created by Tinker Dam...just downriver from Fort Fairfield...by the morning of April 1st. Fluctuating elevated river levels persisted at Fort Fairfield through much of the 3rd. River levels crested at around 14 feet during the early morning hours of the 2nd when additional ice released upriver of Fort Fairfield which eventually reached and briefly re-inforced the ice jam near Tinker Dam. The river held around 14 feet for several hours before slowly dropping as the ice jam began to gradually erode. Even at its crest around 14 feet...only minor flooding was reported around Fort Fairfield. A senior citizen center was evacuated just as a precaution. The main impact of the high water was spillover into several boat launch areas and parking lots which border the river. A portion of Russel Road...which runs along the river near Fort Fairfield...was closed for about 12 hours during the 2nd due to spillover into a low lying section of the road. Another ice jam formed along the St. John River during the afternoon of March 31st and also persisted into the evening of April 3rd. The initial ice floe was 7 miles in length and was a result of upriver ice releases on both the St. John and Allagash Rivers. The ice floe began to jam between the towns of Grand Isle and Van Buren. The jam then broke-up and re-formed as it migrated from Grand Isle...to Van Buren...to Hamlin before moving into New Brunswick Province late on the 3rd. By the time the floe exited the Maine portion of the river it had compressed to about 2 miles in length. The ice jam maintained elevated water levels along the stretch of the St. John River from Grand Isle...to Van Buren...to Hamlin. The main impact of the elevated river levels was some spillover into low lying fields and boat launch areas along the river. The ice jam also produced elevated water levels on smaller tributary streams but no significant flooding was reported.