Meteorologist: Rain this weekend won't significantly impact river levels in Lansing area

LANSING - The quarter inch of rain expected to fall in the Lansing area Saturday night shouldn't significantly impact water levels on the Grand or Red Cedar rivers, according to a meteorologist with the National Weather Service.

And it's too early to tell how much additional rain another anticipated storm system expected Wednesday and Thursday will bring to the region, said Heather Orow, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service.

"We're still trying to determine what kind of rain totals we're going to get Wednesday and Thursday," she said Saturday morning.

Orow said that both the Grand River, which reached 14.6 feet Friday in Lansing, and the Red Cedar River, which reached 10.28 feet Thursday afternoon, have fallen below those levels.

Saturday morning the Grand River sat at 13.6 feet, and Orow said it's expected to drop below its flooding stage of 11 feet by Monday morning.

The Red Cedar River in East Lansing, at 9.1 feet Saturday morning, is expected to fall below its flood stage of 7 feet by Monday evening, Orow said.

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Lansing remains in a state of emergency after those rivers rose to their highest levels in decades this week. The flooding impacted hundreds of homes and businesses in the area.

Businesses closed up shop, some residents evacuated their homes, and schools were forced to make alternate accommodations for busing students to and from the worst-hit areas.

On Friday, officials said residents affected by flooding could return to their homes but asked them to be cautious of river levels near their property.

The American Red Cross is providing shelter to affected residents at Letts Community Center, at 1220 W. Kalamazoo St. in Lansing. Monetary donations for flood victims can be directed to the Red Cross by calling 484-7461.

Donations of goods can be dropped off at any Lansing area Goodwill store.

Anyone interested in volunteering during the recovery efforts can visit www.lansingmi.gov/news to sign-up.

Granger Waste Services is extending its hours of operation at the Granger Disposal Center of Lansing, at 16500 Wood Road in Lansing, according to a news release issued Friday.

The center's extended hours start Monday, Feb. 26, and continue through Monday, March 5. Hours will be Monday through Friday from 7 a.m. to 4 p.m. and Saturday from 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. The center will accept household trash, construction material, furniture, tires and appliances.

Granger is also offering reduced delivery fees for roll-off containers in the Lansing area. For more information customers can call 372 -2800 or visit Granger's website at www.grangernet.com.

Contact Rachel Greco at (517) 528-2075 or rgreco@lsj.com. Follow her on Twitter @GrecoatLSJ.