WYDOT continues to provide support in flood control efforts

Wyoming Department of Transportation maintenance crews are continuing to provide support in flood mitigation efforts near Worland, Manderson and Greybull.

WYDOT’s efforts include transporting and placing concrete barriers, providing sand for sandbagging operations, transporting and placing filled sandbags, closing roads when necessary for safety, inspecting bridges, and advising officials on flood control work.

Runoff water reached high levels over the weekend in the Manderson community at the confluence of the Nowood and Big Horn rivers. Ice from the Nowood River jammed just above Manderson before it flows into the Big Horn River.

“The jam pushed out Monday, and water levels are dropping,” said WYDOT District Engineer Pete Hallsten of Basin. “The town never got wet, but the water came up into the US 16-20 highway right-of-way. The water was still two to three feet below the roadway.”

The ice jam, which flooded parts of the Worland area last week, continues to move down the Big Horn River toward Manderson and Greybull. Tuesday, it remained a couple miles above Manderson.

“If it doesn't reach Manderson today or tomorrow, it may be a while, as the weather is forecast to cool down through the rest of the week,” Hallsten said. “A good snowstorm is being forecast, with dropping temperatures.”

Big Horn River flows through Worland, Manderson and Greybull are high but are currently within the river channel. “Frost is leaving the ground, so runoff water is being absorbed into the ground,” Hallsten said. “So even as the melting picks up, the runoff is subsiding. Most of the low-lying snow is melted throughout the Big Horn Basin.”

WYDOT will continue to provide support to local and state agencies by providing sand for sandbags and concrete barrier if the water continues to rise in the Big Horn River.

“Our main concern remains the ice jams on the Big Horn, and how the ice might impact the towns and our river crossings associated with bridges," Hallsten said.

Wyoming National Guard troops were demobilized from the area on Saturday.

Friday, WYDOT maintenance workers mobilized and hauled 90 pieces of concrete barrier from a Greybull lot owned by traffic control company S&L Industrial of Cowley. Combined with 119 pieces of concrete barrier owned by WYDOT, there are currently 206 pieces of barrier prepared for use in potential flooding in Greybull. One truckload of the WYDOT concrete barrier (15 pieces) was hauled to Greybull from Rock Springs.

“From what it currently looks like, we are in a waiting game to see what happens,” said WYDOT District Maintenance Engineer Lyle Lamb of Basin. “We all appreciate S&L Industrial's aid. We will continue to support communities along the Big Horn River.”

For additional information about this news release, contact Cody Beers, District 5 public relations specialist, at (307) 856-1341 or at (307) 431-1803.