OGDENSBURG -- St. Lawrence County and city of Ogdensburg officials had the opportunity to sit down and discuss flooding issues along the St. Lawrence River with the director of the New York State Office of Emergency Management Monday morning in Ogdensburg.

Kevin Wisely, who also serves as deputy commissioner for the state's Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Services, met with St. Lawrence County Emergency Services Michael Lecuyer, St. Lawrence County Administrator Ruth Doyle and Ogdensburg Mayor Wayne Ashley and took a brief tour of the greenbelt.

Assemblywoman Addie A.E. Jenne, who spent time last week filling sandbags with other volunteers and National Guard troops in Chaumont, said Governor Andrew Cuomo and his administration have been working hard to provide assistance to communities that have been impacted by flooding on the shores of the St. Lawrence River and Lake Ontario.

She said she is cosponsoring legislation drafted by Assemblyman Joe Morelle that would establish a $105 million flood recovery grant program limited to municipalities on the shores of the St. Lawrence River and Lake Ontario.

The bill, expected to be introduced this week, would establish a grant program for flood recovery as well as mitigation planning for future weather events. The program would allow small businesses, farmers, owners of multiple dwellings, homeowners, not-for profit corporations and municipalities to receive grants from the Empire State Development Corporation.

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New York State Office of Emergency Management Director Kevin Wisely, second from left, discusses flooding issues in the city of Ogdensburg with Mayor Wayne Ashley, third from left, Monday morning during a tour of the greenbelt area behind the Dobisky Center. They were joined on the tour by St. Lawrence County Emergency Services Director Michael Lecuyer and St. Lawrence County Administrator Ruth Doyle. Pictured from left Lecuyer, Director Wisely, Mayor Ashley and County Administrator Doyle.

Director Wisely, during his stop in Ogdensburg, said 1.3 million sandbags have been packed across an eight-county region since the first flooding was reported on April 11 in Wayne and Orleans counties. He said there are sandbag machines deployed to each county in the region, and three counties currently have two machines.

"Water levels are expected to remain high or rise over the next five weeks," he said, noting the winds associated with late spring and early summer storms could also cause problems for shoreline communities.

Wisely said the state started out with eight sandbag machines and has added five more to its fleet in recent weeks to meet the need. He said 200 National Guard members have also been deployed around the region to assist in the sandbag effort, and the Army Corps of Engineers is also providing technical assistance at the request of Governor Cuomo.

Lecuyer showed Wisely that the water level has dropped several inches by Monday from its high mark in the greenbelt area near the Dobisky Center.

He said of the 10,000 sandbags that were packed last week for St. Lawrence County approximately 1,750 were being used to protect properties in the city of Ogdensburg and the towns of Morristown and Oswegatchie.

"Our expectation is the need for sandbags will grow this weekend when people come to the area this Memorial Day weekend to open their camps and find out they are inundated with water," Lecuyer noted.

Mayor Ashley said there is some concern that a walking path in the city may have been damaged by the flood waters, but he said city officials won't be able to assess the damage until the water levels drop.