North Dakota state agencies have begun meeting to prepare for spring flooding.
"Going into this fall, we are at a historic soil saturation, pretty much statewide," said North Dakota Homeland Security director Cody Schulz. "The Water Commission is calling it 'once in a generation.'"
Schulz said the agencies thought the earlier to start preparing, the better.
Schulz said what’s also driving the early preparation is the forecast for the December through February time frame. The National Weather Service says there’s a 40 percent chance of higher than normal precipitation.
Schulz said communication about conditions will be crucial.
"We want to communicate with the counties, the cities, our political subdivisions, as well as the general public, as to what we can do as a community to protect life, property and the environment going into spring," Schulz said.
Schulz said by getting a jump on planning, it will help minimize impacts from any spring flooding that might happen.
"Investments in preparation and mitigation save us time, effort and money, when it comes to response and recovery," Schulz said. "By being prepared, by planning, by communicating with our stakeholders, it'll help minimize impacts, if we do have to respond to flooding in the spring."
