Flood waters from McKay Creek run through Community Park in Pendleton on April 12, 2019. The has received a $300,000 federal grant to study the McKay Creek to basin to prevent future flooding.

PENDLETON — The Federal Emergency Management Administration granted the city of Pendleton $300,000 to conduct a study on the McKay Creek basin to prevent future flooding, according to an Oct. 19 press release from the city.

FEMA approved the grant in the wake of the 2019 McKay Creek floods, when heavy rainfall overwhelmed McKay Reservoir near Pendleton and flood damaged more than 60 homes along the creek. The city cleared sediment from the McKay Creek bed in 2020, but the city study would look for further solutions, including better snowpack monitoring equipment, deepening the reservoir or allocating more storage capacity to flood management.