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Midland’s city manager Brad Kaye said in a news conference that he expects the flooding’s peak to occur at 9 p.m. ET today, when water will have flooded an additional 3 feet.
He said properties closest to the breached dam could be entirely underwater.
“We’ve never been through an event such as we are experiencing today,” Kaye said.
Kaye urged citizens to prepare and not “take it easy at this point in time” because the city is yet to reach the flood’s peak.
He said water remains clean, but the sewer system is at risk. Four sewer pumping stations have been submerged and consequently shut down so far. There are also power outages.
It is not clear what kind of damage the dam has sustained because it remains underwater, Kaye said.
He said the Grace A. Dow Memorial Library, which had $1 million in damages due to a 2017 flood, has been flooded again. The first floor is completely flooded and materials are being removed.
The Chairman of the Board of Commissioners for Midland County, Mark Bone, referred to the flooding as a 500-year flood and said there are about 500 people staying at the five shelters across the county.
The Tittabawassee River is forecast to crest 38 feet at 8 p.m. ET today.
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