South Dakota Governor Dennis Daugaard has directed state emergency officials to work with federal and local entities to assess the potential for Missouri River flooding this year.

Daugaard also asked citizens who live in flood-prone areas along the river to assess their individual situations and to pay attention to any changing conditions as warmer spring weather brings the annual snowmelt and raises flows in the river.

Daugaard says currently, the moisture equivalent of the snowpack in the Montana mountains mirrors that of 2011 at this time…

 

While there may not be much snowpack in the upper Missouri River Basin. Daugaard says they still don’t have a good way to measure it…

 

The Governor did say that the large reservoirs near Fort Peck, Bismarck and Pierre have more storage space than was available at this time in 2011.

Daugaard says the wild card is how much moisture comes in the spring…

 

At the Governor’s direction, the Office of Emergency Management in the Department of Public Safety has conducted a risk assessment on South Dakota rivers, staged flood resources across the state, begun regular communications with officials in Missouri River communities, and engaged other appropriate state and federal agencies in information exchanges.