Montana
Montana canal pipe splits open, flooding area and threatening local farming industry, 1 city’s water
Two century-old steel pipes that help convey water from a river on the Blackfeet Indian Reservation to a river that helps irrigate northern Montana cropland have failed, causing local flooding and raising concerns about the availability of drinking water for 14,000 residents in the city of Havre later this summer.
No injuries or deaths have been reported since the first 7.5 foot (2.3 meter) pipe split open Monday morning, causing flooding in the rural area east of Glacier National Park near the U.S.-Canadian border. The gushing of water caused some washouts 50 feet (15.24 meters) deep and destabilized the concrete footings holding a second pipe, which broke Monday afternoon, the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation said.
Staff closed the headgates that diverted St. Mary River water into a 9-mile (14.48-kilometer) canal after the first pipe was breached, but the Bureau of Reclamation expected it to take up to 36 hours for that canal to drain through the broken pipes. The water, which was flowing at 600 cubic feet per second when the first pipe broke, was down to a trickle Tuesday afternoon, said Ryan Newman, the bureau’s Montana area manager.
The pipes, which were built between 1912 and 1926, are part of a siphon system to carry St. Mary River water across a ravine over the river and uphill to another canal that feeds it into the North Fork of the Milk River.
The break comes a month before a $100 million replacement project on the headgates was expected to begin and during the peak irrigation season.
The agency’s 2023 study of the headgates replacement project warned that a failure would affect farmers through reduced crop production and could place a strain on local businesses and communities.
The economic impact of the failure of the pipes will depend on how long it takes crews to restore the flow of water to local producers, who are between 200 and 350 miles (320 and 560 kilometers) from the diversion. The Bureau of Reclamation will start working on those assessments, Newman said. Design work on a project to replace the pipes, which was underway before the pipes failed, is about 60% complete, he said.
Officials with the Milk River Project, the organization set to oversee the headgates replacement project, labeled the breach a “catastrophic failure,” which could result in an economic disaster for north-central Montana, the Flathead Beacon reported. Farmers with 120,000 acres (45,562 hectares) of land from Havre to Glasgow rely on the irrigation water, Newman said.
The flooding scoured the hillside, damaged property, eliminated an access road to a motel and a horse boarding facility in Babb, Montana, and could cause utility disruptions in the surrounding areas, officials said.
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This story has been updated to correct that replacement work on the headgates, not the pipes, was scheduled to start next month.
Where Khloe Kardashian Stands With Ex French Montana More Than 10 Years After Breakup
French Montana is done keeping up with reality TV.
In fact, he only agreed to appear on Keeping Up With The Kardashians and Kourtney & Khloé Take the Hamptons over a decade ago as a favor to then-girlfriend Khloe Kardashian.
“She said to get on the show,” he exclusively told E! News at the BET Awards on June 28. “And I got on the show. Shout out to Khloe.”
The “Ever Since U Left Me” rapper, who split with Kardashian in December 2014 after eight months of dating, said the experience was “fun” because her family kept it real.
“They filmed their real life,” he continued. “And we were part of something together that one time. So it felt great. It didn’t feel like work because they film what they do everyday.”
As for his future in reality TV, the 41-year-old said those days are over, shutting down any prospective offers with a simple, “Negative.”
Although the “Unforgettable” artist—whose real name is Karim Kharbouch—may not be returning to television anytime soon, he has no problem hanging out with his ex-girlfriend these days.
French Montana, Rick Ross & Max B Turn the BET Awards Into “
06/28/2026
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GREAT FALLS — For Staff Sgt. Brianna St. Lawrence-Brody, service does not only happen in uniform.
Outside the gates of the base, she works at Benefis as a nurse, Great Falls Public Schools as a school nurse, and comes home as a wife and mom of four. For the Montana Air National Guard, she serves as a command post controller with the 120th Airlift Wing in Great Falls.
(WATCH: Montana nurse and Guard member earns national Air Force recognition)
Montana nurse and Guard member earns national Air Force recognition
This year, St. Lawrence-Brody was named the U.S. Air National Guard’s Outstanding Airman of the Year in the Non-Commissioned Officer category.
She said the recognition came as a surprise, especially because her path into the Guard started later than others.
“I joined very late in life,” St. Lawrence-Brody said. “I joined the Guard right before I turned 40. So for me, every opportunity that’s presented, I want to take the bull by the horns and just run with it and do the best of my ability.”
During the COVID-19 pandemic, she joined the Guard after finishing nursing school. She said she went straight from nursing school into helping open a COVID unit, while also working at Benefis.
She said that experience was the start of one journey, but not the whole of what she wanted to accomplish.
St. Lawrence-Brody joined the Guard for the opportunities, the challenge and to help build a future for her four children.
“It’s a little bit of a competition for myself,” she said. “Like, if I can do it, why not try my best to achieve it?”
120th Airlift Wing Public Affairs
As a command post controller, she assists in helping move information during emergencies and major events.
“Outside, obviously, I’m a nurse. Inside the Guard, I have nothing to do with the medical field, which is kind of amazing,” St. Lawrence-Brody said. “It keeps me on my toes.”
She explained balancing the Guard, two civilian jobs and four children takes support from her family, her employers and her unit. She said Benefis and GFPS have been supportive of her military service.
Her nomination included her deployment experience, training work overseas and involvement across the wing. St. Lawrence-Brody said she deployed to Ramstein Air Base in Germany, where she worked with an operations center supporting entities connected to Africa.
But, she says this recognition is not the finish line.
“This award, it’s not necessarily a landing pad for me,” St. Lawrence-Brody said. “I want to use it as a springboard.”
120th Airlift Wing Public Affairs
St. Lawrence-Brody hopes her story encourages others to keep taking on new opportunities, even when they feel uncertain.
“Get comfortable with being uncomfortable and be okay with doing things afraid,” she said. “I think when you get to be okay with doing things afraid, that’s where you’re going to find the growth.”
She has already won at the Air National Guard level, but she recently traveled to Washington, D.C., as part of the broader Air Force Outstanding Airman of the Year process, which includes nominees from the Guard, Reserve and major commands across the Air Force.
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