Residents Told to Evacuate After Michigan Levee Breached
The New York Times • • nation
Key Points:
- Residents in northern Michigan were urged to evacuate following a levee breach in the Little Black River Watershed near Cheboygan, amid ongoing storms and flooding in the Upper Midwest.
- Local officials had been reinforcing the Cheboygan Dam for days due to rapidly rising water levels, but the breach occurred at a different location, prompting evacuation orders for about half of the city’s 4,800 residents.
- Emergency responders assisted with evacuations, asking residents to indicate their departure by placing a towel or fabric on their door handles.
- Governor Gretchen Whitmer declared a state of emergency last Friday to mobilize resources in response to melting snow and heavy rain, enabling crews to work extensively to manage water levels at the dam.
