Expect to see the Mississippi River creeping out of its banks later this week.
The National Weather Service in La Crosse, Wis., expects the river to exceed flood stage in Wabasha on Thursday as the river rises past 12 feet. Downriver, the Mississippi will reach flood stage – 13 feet – in Winona on Sunday morning and rise to 13.3 feet by Sunday evening.
Heavy snowfalls earlier this month are melting, causing the waters of the Mississippi to rise, the NWS reports, and the 13.3 level Sunday might not be the end of the rising waters.
A look at hydrological readings across Southeast Minnesota show water peaking along the Zumbro near Lake Zumbro and high waters today at Turtle Creek near Austin. Both sites should see water levels slowly diminish during the next few days.
A slight chance of rain Thursday across the region won’t help, with the rain also melting remaining snow along the way, the NWS reports.