Residents near the Little Saskatchewan River in western Manitoba are moving to higher ground after the province voiced concerns over the integrity of the dam near Rivers, Man.

"The Manitoba government does not have confidence in the Rivers Dam," the province says in a media bulletin released on July 1.

Western Manitoba saw significant rainfall over the course of 72 hours earlier this week. Some areas had over 200 mm of rain. That rainfall has resulted in swollen riverbanks, and highways being washed out.

The province had engineers investigate the Rivers Dam, and says that as a result, it's recommending that 30 to 40 properties along the Little Saskatchewan River that are downstream of the dam be evacuated.

The RM of Riverdale heeded those warnings later on Canada Day and issued the evacuation order, which also includes cattle. The town of Rivers itself, located 30 kilometres northwest of Brandon, is not at risk.

Infrastructure Minister Ron Schuler, and several other MLAs, toured much of flooded western Manitoba on Tuesday as well. "The dam is facing unprecedented flows on the Little Saskatchewan River following heavy rains over the past few days, and provincial and consulting engineers have indicated there is potential for structural failure," the province says.

Aaron Douglas lives in the area. He says he's "praying to the man upstairs that it's gonna hold for the next few weeks because there is some crazy pressure being put on [the dam]."

In a message to CHVN, Douglas says that it's scary knowing that the dam is compromised, but he is holding out hope.

An excavator was working in the area on Wednesday trying to provide some relief for the bridge that crosses the river.