The National Weather Service office out of Grand Forks has released its latest Red River Basin flood forecast, and is indicating the risk for moderate to higher Spring flooding has increased since its last outlook a couple weeks ago.

The risk is now near, or above, long-term historical averages across the U.S. portion of the Red River basin.

The forecast does not include potential impacts from this weekend's potentially significant snowfall event.

Moderate to isolated major Spring flooding is indicated for much of the mainstem of the Red River, including at Grand Forks and Pembina.

Snowmelt timing and the thaw cycle, along with any additional snow or rain, will be the most important factors contributing to Spring flood risk.

The next outlook will be released March 23rd.

graphic indicating flood outlook from NWS Grand ForksGraphic courtesy NWS Grand Forks Twitter page