Authorities have lifted an evacuation order for residents along a river near Traverse City where crews have been working to dismantle a dam.
The area is near the Brown Bridge dam on the Boardman River in Grand Traverse County. The evacuation order was eased at 4:15 p.m. Saturday, allowing people to return home.
The sheriff's office says the dam was unstable earlier Saturday as water overflowed the bank. Mary Flees, who has lived downstream for 50 years, told the Traverse City Record-Eagle that water from the rising river was close enough for her to fish from her deck.
The 28-mile-long Boardman River flows into Lake Michigan at Traverse City. The Brown Bridge dam is among three dams to be removed to return the river to its natural flow.
