Manitoba Water Stewardship's Hydrologic Forecast Centre said in its updated spring flood outlook that "mild weather is resulting in a slow, steady melt about two weeks earlier than normal."

With runoff "quite advanced," the mighty Red River is predicted to peak in the provincial capital Winnipeg in late March or early April, after cresting over the weekend in the US state of North Dakota to the south, it said.

Flooding along the Red River is expected to reach 2006 levels or about 0.9 meters (three feet) below 2009 levels.

However, heavy rain or snowfall could worsen this flood outlook, officials said.

"Compared to last spring, we now have five times the amount of temporary flood barriers available for rapid deployment to protect people and property in flood-prone areas across Manitoba," Steve Ashton, the provincial minister responsible for emergency measures, said in a statement.

"An additional 1,500 flood tube barriers, representing a two-million-dollar investment, brings the total to more than 50,000 linear metres."

The province has so far cut through 26 kilometers (16 miles) of ice on the Red River to reduce the risk of flooding caused by ice jams, allowing ice flow northward to Lake Winnipeg, the minister said.

As well, more than 60 homes have been removed since last year from the "most vulnerable locations along the Red River," he said.

As in 2006, when Manitoba experienced its sixth-largest flood in 100 years, it is expected that some roads will be closed in southern Manitoba and some community ring dikes will be partially closed.

However, no communities are expected to lose all road access, Ashton said.

The Red River valley in southern Manitoba is an important region for growing wheat and canola. Due to massive flooding, farmers last year left hundreds of thousands of acres unseeded.

Flooding in the region occurs every spring, but the worst was in 1997, resulting in over 500 million dollars (405 million US) of damage in Manitoba, and in 1950 when 100,000 people were evacuated from the province.

The 2009 flood was said by officials to be the second-worst on record since the 1800s.

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