Flood waters have damaged 500 homes in Manitoba and resulted in 2,355 people registering as evacuees. (Bert Savard/CBC)

Flood officials have downgraded the crest forecast for the Souris River in light of a more promising report from the United States.

The river, which originates in Saskatchewan, meanders south through North Dakota before returning north into Manitoba.

There were harried preparations in Melita, a town of about 1,000 people in the southwest corner of Manitoba, after the river started to rise rapidly late last week, threatening several businesses on the edge of the community.

'There shouldn't be too much danger to homes, although again, in the southern part of Melita and some homes south of Souris, it will still be a close call.'—Alf Warkentin, Manitoba's chief flood forecaster

Grant Hume, manager of the emergency operations centre in Melita and the rural municipality of Arthur, said the river level was going up 15 to 25 centimetres a day.

While the river is still a threat — the crest is expected to arrive April 29 or 30 — it is not anticipated to rise as much as first thought.

"The U.S. National Weather Service has downgraded its forecast at Westhope [North Dakota], just south of the border. The flows look similar to what they were in 1999 [and] that being the case, the forecast has been revised downward by one foot in Manitoba," said Manitoba's chief flood forecaster Alf Warkentin late Monday.

"There shouldn't be too much danger to homes, although again, in the southern part of Melita and some homes south of Souris, it will still be a close call."

'People's livelihood, their farms, will be unusable for an entire season.'—Grant Hume, Melita emergency operations centre

Despite the improved outlook, some people still aren't taking any chances. Doug Calverley is moving his truck repair company out of the way of any potential threat.

"We're going to take the essential stuff, anything we think might get wet, and we're going to lift it up [off] the floor," he said. "The major stuff we're taking with us … and heading north [of town]."

As crews tried on Monday to quickly build sandbag and clay dikes to hold back the water, the provincial government pledged $500,000 to upgrade Melita's permanent earth dike.

"There's an awful lot of farmland in the community here that, based on the current flood forecasts, is going to be unusable this year, and there's going to be a significant financial impact," said Hume. "People's livelihood, their farms, will be unusable for an entire season."

Compensation available for evacuees

About 500 Manitoba homes have been damaged in some way by flooding this spring, according to Manitoba's Emergency Measures Organization, which also stated there are 2,355 registered evacuees in the province — 1,089 have registered with the Red Cross, and 1,266 have registered with the Manitoba Association of Native Fire Fighters.

However, Don Brennan, acting EMO director, suspects the total is a lot higher.

"This number does not include some of the people who have just voluntarily left their homes and not registered," he said. "So it's always important that, if you are out there and you hear this, that you should be registering, because you are eligible for a daily compensation, even if you are staying with relatives."