Although the Mississippi River crested Saturday afternoon and water levels are slowly falling, it may still be some time before parks, roads and trails reopen to the public, officials said Sunday.
The river crested at 6.17 feet Saturday afternoon in St. Paul and reached 6.6 feet Sunday afternoon, said Lisa Hiebert, a spokesperson for St. Paul Public Works. This year’s crest was the eighth-highest ever, just shy of the 2019 high.
According to Hiebert, the fact that water levels are dropping does not mean that much will change for the time being, noting that the river’s water level is still in the “major flood” zone.
People should still avoid anything that is closed off, she said.
“Please don’t go around anything that is barricaded,” she said. “I can’t emphasize that enough. That has all been arranged for everyone’s safety.”
Everything closed now will remain closed for now, she said, noting that all protective measures remain in place, such as closing trails, parks and launches.
And she can’t say when that will change. “It will depend on the water levels going down, but just because the water is going down, the city still has a lot of work to do before it can reopen,” she said.
The city must inspect the closed areas for damage, make repairs, take soil samples, clean up, and then remove all protective barriers and measures.
“That all takes time,” Hiebert said. “We just ask that people be patient. It will take some time.”
For example, in 2019, after flood waters receded on Water Street, an inspection found that the levee had washed away, requiring the city to completely rebuild the levee and guardrail, which took almost two years.
For updated information, visit stpaul.gov/flood.
In Stillwater, the Mississippi River is expected to crest at 1 a.m. Monday.
