Spring Melt Begins This Week
March 4, 2025, for immediate release
The spring melt is beginning, and the 糖心直播 (UTRCA) reminds residents to use extreme caution near all watercourses and to stay out of any flooded areas.
The UTRCA鈥檚 snow survey data from across the watershed indicates the snowpack contains the equivalent of 75-110 mm of water.
Temperatures are forecast to stay above freezing until Wednesday night, with 20-30 mm of rain and potentially 5-10 mm more rain in isolated thunderstorms. This combination of warmer temperatures and rain will begin melting the snowpack, with a significant portion of the snow being depleted by the end of the week.
The UTRCA expects rivers, streams, and ditches will rise, spilling into low lying floodplain areas, parklands, and other areas that flood frequently. Localized flooding may also occur in areas where snow is blocking catch basins, and smaller rural watercourses and drains that have been drifted in by snow, backing up water onto adjacent lands.
Residents are reminded to use extreme caution near all watercourses, stay out of any flooded areas, and not drive through flooded roads. Parents are reminded to keep children and pets away from rivers, streams, ponds, and ditches. Stream banks can be slippery and unstable, and the water is very cold and fast-moving. Any ice cover will be weakened and unstable. Flood control reservoirs are especially hazardous due to fluctuating water levels.
As water levels rise, it is not safe to take shelter along riverbanks or in low lying areas that are prone to flooding.
The UTRCA鈥檚 flood control reservoirs at Fanshawe, Wildwood, and Pittock Conservation Areas are within seasonal range and will be operated to reduce downstream flooding. The UTRCA is monitoring the situation and will provide an update later in the week as the event progresses.
- See Thames River water levels and flows
- Types of flood bulletins
- Find out how the UTRCA manages floods
Contact: Eleanor Heagy, Communications and Marketing Coordinator