Amphibex fleet to hit the ice near Selkirk, Man.

Ice breaking on the Red River is about to get underway in Selkirk Man.

At the base of Netley Creek Monday morning, crewspiecedtogether three Amphibex machines, whichby the end of March, should leave a trail of broken ice 28 kilometres long.

"The mouth of Netley Creek is a really important area on the Red River. If ice jams up in this location, it backs into Petersfield," saidDarrell Kupchik, executive director of North Red waterway maintenance.

"We've seen some catastrophic ice jam flooding atthis location. We've seen homes destroyed," said Kupchik.

Ice breaking is starting around the same time as usual, he said, though noting that"the window of opportunity is very small in ice-breaking."

In years past, crews who started a bit earlier saw parts of the Redre-freeze, Kupchik cited.

The three Amphibex machines, which cost roughly $1.2 million each, wereoriginally designed for clearing out the beds ofbodies of water an act called dredging. They were modified, however, to bear the brunt of ice breaking, Kupchik said.

"Once we start these units up today, we won't shut them off until the end of March," Kupchik said.

Once the work is done near Selkirk, the Amphibex machines will move about 120 kilometres north of Winnipeg to the Icelandic River near Riverton, Man., thenFisher River Cree Nation and BrokenheadOjibwayNation.

The machines will be on stand-by in case ice jams occur in the spring, but once the flood risk is gone, they will undergo maintenance, Kupchik said.

Watch: How Amphibex ice-breakers work

Amphibex ice-breakers: How they work

6 years ago

Duration 1:01

Amphibex ice-breakers use a series of specialized components to crush through river ice every spring to help reduce the likelihood of ice jams and flooding.