A sign of spring in North Dakota: flood warnings.

The National Weather Service issued one for parts of Stutsman County on Wednesday, saying rapid snowmelt was causing the Pipestem Creek near Pingree to rise.

Charlene Prindiville, a hydrologist with the National Weather Service in Bismarck, said water levels on the creek upstream of the state Highway 36 bridge have risen 5 feet since Monday and ice jams have been reported in the area.

"Flood stage is 9 feet and it's just under 9 feet now," Prindiville said Wednesday afternoon.

Prindiville and Stutsman County emergency manager Jerry Bergquist said no homes were threatened.

"It's not life-threatening," Prindiville said. "We don't want to be scaring anybody with this."

"It's a low-lying agriculture area, and no houses are even close to the area," Bergquist said. "At this point, I guess I'd call it a technical warning."

Bergquist said it's the first time in a decade the area has been under a flood warning.

"The biggest potential for danger is water on the highway," Bergquist said. "The road department and the sheriff's department are watching to make sure nothing gets out of hand."

Prindiville said the Pipestem Reservoir northwest of Jamestown has risen 2 feet since Tuesday.

"That's good, because it had been low all winter," Prindiville said.

Forecasters said central North Dakota could get a couple of inches of snow Wednesday night with a low pressure system moving through. Minor flooding was expected through the end of the week in the James River basin due to snowmelt and ice jams, the weather service said.