Ostrobothnia preparing for record flooding this weekend

Thick packed ice in rivers prevents waterflow

print this

Late winter downpours doubled the precipitation level for the entire winter, raising the water levels in Ostrobothnia's rivers rapidly in recent days. Worse than normal floods are expected in Ostrobothnia this coming weekend.
      The water has risen fastest in the Lapuanjoki River - by as much as 90 centimetres from Tuesday to Wednesday morning. It will require another metre more until the water level reaches the actual flood height.
      The rising pace in the water level in the Kyrönjoki River has been around half a metre per day, with less than two metres to go until it reaches flood proportions.
     
In three locations, the rising water has already flooded over the riverbank. Some hundreds of hectares are covered by water.
      The flood in the Ostrobothnia rivers is expected to reach its peak at the weekend. "In the course of the two last weeks, the total precipitation for this past winter doubled", notes
Martti Kujanpää from the West Finland Regional Environment Centre.
      To cut the flood peaks, water reservoirs were emptied along the Lapuanjoki and Kyrönjoki Rivers on Tuesday.
     
Kujanpää is particularly concerned about the thick packed ice in rivers. Ice some 60 to 80 centimetres thick is obstructing waterflow in rivers. If the ice cover does not break apart, protective embankments will have to be opened in order to let the water flow onto the fields.
     
To prevent the formation of ice dams, the ice in the most susceptible areas along the Kyrönjoki, Ähtävänjoki, Lestijoki, and Perhonjoki has been mechanically sawn.
      Himanka's Säikkä in Central Ostrobothnia is estimated to be Finland's most susceptible residential area for flooding. The area is located along the Lestijoki River, and according to Kujanpää, a plan to improve the protective embankments of the river will be completed soon.


Previously in HS International Edition:
  Flooding in Finnish Lapland leads to large-scale evacuations in Ivalo and Kittilä (27.5.2005)

Links:
  West Finland Regional Environment Centre

Helsingin Sanomat