News photo by Josh Jambor Alpena resident Anna Knieczny fishes near the Ninth Street dam on Friday afternoon. The combination of melting snow and additional precipitation has raised concerns regarding flooding and shoots in the dam are already releasing large volumes of water from the Thunder Bay River.

ALPENA – As the snow continues to melt in the area, any additional precipitation could create the possibility for flooding in Northeast Michigan.

With rain and possibly snow forecast throughout the weekend and into next week those concerns may intensify, National Weather Service Meteorologist Nicole Sprinkles said.

“We are concerned for a lot of area rivers right now, because of the consistent and heavy rainfall we have been getting lately,” Sprinkles said. “With all the precipitation that is expected to move through the area throughout the weekend we are looking at the possibility of another inch of rain in some areas, which could cause some problems with area rivers,”

As the area moves through the holiday weekend and into next week the potential for flooding will only increase as more precipitation is expected. The Alpena area has had its share of snow, ice, and rain over the last several weeks and ground is heavily saturated and bodies of water getting close to spilling over their banks.

“Moving into next week, with that additional rainfall that we could be getting, it could cause some issues,” Sprinkles said. “It is definitely something we are monitoring and something we are watching and talking closely with our emergency managers and partners.”

“With all that precipitation we are expecting next week we are monitoring Quantitative Precipitation Forecasts, which measures how much liquid we are actually expecting as the weather system moves closer,” Sprinkles added.

There are numerous categories of flooding, Sprinkles spoke about the difference in flood types and what she is most concerned about locally.

“Right now, we are not too concerned with area flooding, which is a whole bunch of rain falling at one time and pooling in one area,” Sprinkles said. “Right now, our main focus is on the rivers in our forecast area because we do have a lot of snow melt still happening across eastern upper and northern Michigan.”

“With that snow melt trickling down into the basins and into the rivers that is the main concern, especially with any additional precipitation,” Sprinkles added.

If the need for a flood warning should arise there are criteria that must, Sprinkles discussed what goes into making that decision.

“It differs in each area, for all the rivers they have different flood stages, there is mountains of science that goes into what that flood stage is and how it impacts the different communities,” Sprinkles explained. “Which is why I mentioned we are working closely with our emergency managers and partners in the area, who work as our resources within the communities we are monitoring.”

If a flood warning is issued Sprinkles recommends taking the following precautionary measures to keep yourself and your family safe.

“If a flood warning is issued, I advise you to follow the instructions included with the warning and get to hire ground,” Sprinkles said. “And, if it becomes necessary to evacuate, please do so.”