The Minneapolis journal. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn.) 1888-1939, 1905-07-03
CONTINUED RAIN
MEANS DISASTER.
BIG RESERVOIRS OF THE RED RIV-
Err ALREADY FILLED.
If July Is as Wet as June, These Will
Overflow and the Floods Will Do I'm
mense Damage Thus Far the Situa-
ton Is Not Alarming-River Work
Stopped. @

If the rainfall of July is as great as
that in June, the upper Mississippi will
see floods which will make the present
swollen condition of the river look like
a mere trickle and untold damage will
be the inevitable result.
Thru June the great storage reser-.
voirs in the northern part Of the state
manned closed AS a result, these res
ervoirs have caught the great food Of
the upper Mississippi valley. and the
present high condition of the river IS
due simply to the water which has
drained in below the great dams. If
July, however, gets the same down
pours that June did, the reservoirs will
be unable to hold the foodwaters, which
will rush down the stream in an unre-
strained deluge.
Last Wednesday the great Winnibi-
gashish reservoir reached its storage
limit, 100000, 900 cubic feet. So far,
it has been partially open, but releasing
only an amount of water that has been
caught by dams below before getting
is now closed and full. Its capacity is
7,000,000,000 cubic feet. Leech lake
reservoir is not yet up to its limit, 22,-
000,000,000 cubic feet, but is rapidly
rising and has already reached a point
where it holds $4,000, 100000 cubic feet.
Water is being released only for the
necessary. sluicing of logs.
limit, 3,ooO,0oO,0O0 cubic feet. AS a
rule, the water on the upper side Of
the. Sandy lake dam is s to II feet
higher than that of the river below.
But at present, because Of the swollen
condition OF the stream, the water Oh
the upper side of the dam is but two or
three-tenths of foot higher. 4
At present the Pine river reservoir
dam is being rebuilt, 50 instead. of it's
of water-its capacity-it now retains
only $500, 100000 feet.
But One Complaint as Yet.
There is vastly more in the big reser-
voirs now than is usual at this time
OF year: Counting on very little rain
thru July, there is now sufficient water
in storage to permit the government to
guarantee good navigable stage of
remainder of the year. ..>
Attic the Mississippi is very high,
the government chief engineer at St..
Paul has received but one complaint.
That is from the Neil Lumber company
Of Cass Lake. This company built a
sawmill on land on which the govern
ment had previously purchased overflow
| 11SuCo. uo Hill Vas UullU 100 low, anu
consequently its operation is now much
| hampered. A.
The federal engineers in charge of the
river work above St. Paul expect the
river to begin to fall Immediately I'M
less the heavy rains continue. IF the
latter, then what will happen is prob
lematical. The high water is putting
all river work, both in the division
above and the one below St. Paul, at a
standstill. In the district above St.
Paul plans called for the expenditure
Of. $4,000 this season, mostl y in the
Minneapolis lock. The probabilities are
that the stage Of water will permit of
'fsaiSe1 e or none Of the work thus pro
Evided for.
1 Below st. Paul, as far down as La
Crosse, numerous wing dams were to
have been built, and much channel
dredging accomplished, the amount al
lowed for this being $250,OOO; yet but
little Of the schedule can be carried
out. The present high water has as
! yet done no injury to any of the GOV.
eminent river work heretofore accom-
plished, but the present delay is nat
urally very annoying to the engineers
who have working plans all completed
for immediate execution.