Rainy Lake crests, sandbag operations winding down

Rainy Lake officially crested Monday, and is expected to begin receding between now and June 20, barring no severe weather events.

With a decrease in demand for sandbags over the last week, active sandbagging operations at Kerry Park are shutting down for the time being. There is a current stockpile of about 100,000 sandbags. National Guard Members who have been working on local flood response over the last month are also set to demobilize Tuesday evening.

The Emergency Operations Team says they will have forklift drivers at Kerry Park from 8:00am to 4:00pm this week, to assist in loading vehicles and trailers for those who are still in need of sandbags.

The American Red Cross and Salvation Army organizations have been a key partner in emergency operations to-date, and will remain on site and available to residents for mental health, first aid and emotional support, for the immediate future.

The Emergency Operations Center will continue to monitor conditions closely and remain active for continuous community disaster response.