BUFFALO, N.Y. — Around the area, municipalities are preparing for possible flooding. A Flood Watch has been issued for all of Western New York as temperatures rise and rain is expected.
Triangles have been cut out of the ice in part of Cazenovia Creek.
"The purpose of those triangles is to weaken the ice," said Mike Finn, DPW commissioner for the City of Buffalo.
Nearly ten divers from the Buffalo Police Department's underwater recovery team cut those triangles.
"That causes a stress point for that ice field so when that ice field begins to shift and move and flex, it's already got someplace where it can crack pretty easily," said Don Potelo, senior operations engineer for the City of Buffalo.
The Buffalo Fire Department's Cotter boat also is out breaking ice in the Buffalo River to prevent ice jams.
On Monday, the city began the efforts to prevent too much flooding in response to the above-freezing temperatures Western New York will see this week.
Not only will it melt snow and ice but the region is also supposed to get about an inch and a half of rain this week.
"It's important for everybody because the ice and the water doesn't care about municipal boundaries so we work cooperatively with West Seneca and our neighboring towns," Finn said.
In the Town of West Seneca, highway superintendent Brian Adams says crews are stockpiling sandbags and clearing snow from drains on the road.
He also also says the town has ordered and rented additional pumps as a precaution.