May 18, 2023 |
Photo – Little Snake River – Bigfoot99 file photo
In the Baggs, the Little Snake River is rising, and officials are working hard to reduce damage from potential flooding in the town.
Winter snowpack is coming off at near peak run-off this week. Residents in Baggs and Dixon are concerned about flooding on the Little Snake River. Baggs Fire and Rescue Chief Jared Wille is acting as the town’s emergency manager. Wille said the Little Snake is at flood stage, but the town is prepared.
Wille said the slough on the south side of Baggs, west of the Little Snake River is especially vulnerable to potential flooding. He said the shallow waterway has been reinforced to prevent water from flowing into town.
The Little Snake has been ebbing and flowing either side of 8-feet this week. Minor Flooding in Baggs happens when river rises above 7 feet. Moderate flooding happens at 8.5-feet.
Wille said he expects the water level to continue to rise over the weekend, but the worst may be yet to come. However, Wille said he is confident river management efforts done in the past will hold the flood waters back.
Wille said he isn’t relying solely on the 13-year-old flood protection. He said barriers have been constructed around the town. If flood waters threaten the town itself, Wille said he will concentrate on protecting essential buildings.
Wille said his job is to protect the whole town from the floodwater. He said residents can get sandbags for free if the water threatens their property.
Carbon County’s Office of Emergency Management allowed Wille to use its automatic sandbag filling machine when the threat of flooding became apparent. Wille said the town already had around 5,000 filled sandbags ready to go before the river reached flood stage. Many of the bags came from the Wyoming State Penitentiary.
The automatic sandbagger was a useful tool, Wille said, but filling a large number of sandbags was a community effort.
Baggs must now wait and see how high the Little Snake River will go. Wille thanked the county and Emergency Manager Lenny Layman for the support they’ve provided to the town.
