Upstate New York prepares as Lake Ontario water rises again

SOMERSET, N.Y. – Emergency officials in upstate New York are again preparing for possible flooding along Lake Ontario.

Niagara County’s director of emergency services, Jonathan Schultz, says lake levels have risen about 5 inches (13 centimetres) in 10 days.

Recent heavy rains, seasonal thaw and a reduction in the lake water the International Joint Commission releases into the St. Lawrence River are contributing to the high waters.

Schultz said crews will begin deploying sandbags and a state of emergency may be enacted if the lake rises by another 6 inches (15 centimetres).

Flooding and heavy erosion along the lake’s shores in 2017 triggered an eventual federal disaster declaration.