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Crews continue to clear ice dams in Jordan to lessen flooding

Valley Green Mobile Home Park in Jordan, Minnesota had to be evacuated due to flooding Thursday evening.

JORDAN, Minn — Jordan police say water levels in the Sand Creek dropped by nearly three feet on the east side of Highway 169 after a second ice jam was broken up by heavy machinery over the weekend. 

However, the department says water levels are still high and warn people against driving into the park.

Water levels spiked in Sand Creek Saturday night, which contributed to flooding that has affected the area for days, and danger on the north side of Valley Green Mobile Home Park remains high as crews continue to work on pushing ice downstream.

Sand Creek water levels spiked to approximately 11.8 feet Saturday, which is the highest level since reaching 12 feet on March 15.

A secondary ice dam had formed on the Highway 169 bridge over Sand Creek creating the additional backup of water in the City. The ice dam was cleared, however, which reduced water levels in the area by 3 feet.

The ice jams caused flash flooding from Sand Creek on Thursday night, and hundreds of people in the surrounding area were evacuated.

13 residents remain at a Red Cross shelter and nine pets are being cared for in a pet shelter.

About 300 mobile homes are affected, which is roughly 1,000 people. According to police, people living in 145 of those homes decided to evacuate. 

Police say the ice jam apparently loosened at about 5:15 p.m. on Friday, causing a quick two-foot drop in the water levels. But they still believe the ice jam is clogged in another location, causing flood waters to back up once again.

Credit: KARE 11
Jordan residents at Valley Green Mobile Home Park were taken to shelter at the Jordan High School.

The National Weather Service says the ice jam redirected most of the water into Valley Green Park. On Friday evening, police posted on Facebook that residents are still asked not to travel in or out of Valley Green park by car, "as water levels are still at a point where most passenger vehicles are unable to successfully pass."

RELATED: Snow melt and rain causing flooded basements and leaky windows

Around 2 or 3 feet of water had collected in areas of Valley Green Park during the flooding as of Thursday night.

First responders used Jordan school buses to venture onto flooded streets and pick up residents who were stranded.

"There's no chance my truck can get through that water, even if it was lifted... there is no chance. I mean, buses are even struggling to get through it," said resident Anthony Doric.

"I came out before it was too bad. I thought it was regular flooding. But by the time I got back around we couldn't get in... the police were blocking everything off," said resident Jessica Munson.

Valley Green Mobile Home Park has flooded before, in 2014. Residents say it looked similar Thursday night.

Police say they are searching for "solutions of any kind" including heavy equipment and many other methods, to clear the jam.

No injuries have been reported at this time.

The National Weather Service says the Flood Warning is in effect until at least Saturday afternoon.

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