St. Croix River Likely to Peak, Sparing Cities From Floods

STILLWATER (AP) -- An eastern Minnesota city will likely be safe from a rising St. Croix River after a powerful rainstorm flooded areas north of it.

Torrential rains last weekend saw a northwestern Wisconsin dam fail, washing out roads and causing river levels to rise more than 100 miles (161 kilometers) downstream near the city of Stillwater. National Weather Service forecasters predict the river will peak at 85 feet (26 meters) on Friday, about 2 feet (1 meter) short of Stillwater's flooding stage, before retreating.

Still, some city officials are skeptical after nervously watching the river slowly rise all week.

Stillwater Mayor Ted Kozlowski says he's unsure if the river is done rising. But he says he doesn't think the water level will rise enough to breach city flood levels.