The U.S. Coast Guard plans to conduct ice-breaking operations Monday on the Kennebec River as flooding and ice-jam risks increase, the Kennebec County Emergency Management Agency said this weekend.

The CGC Shackle, a 65-foot ice-breaking tugboat, was expected to be stationed in Merrymeeting Bay and advance northward through Richmond and Gardiner, weather conditions permitting, Kennebec County EMA said in a Facebook post.

While river ice appeared to be breaking up below Farmingdale over the weekend, the agency said ice was jamming the Augusta portion of the river.

Ice jamming and rainfall were expected to increase flooding risks in low-lying and riverside locations Monday. At least an inch of rain was expected across much of western and central Maine, according to forecasts from the National Weather Service office in Gray.

“Excessive runoff may result in flooding of rivers, creeks, streams, and other low-lying and flood-prone locations,” the weather service said in a message issuing a Flood Watch for most of Maine, which lasts from 2 p.m. Monday through Tuesday afternoon.

The weather service also said ice jams appeared to be primarily limited to northern rivers and streams.

The Coast Guard did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

March and April often bring increased flooding risks to Maine’s rivers as ice and snow melts. An ice jam upriver in Caratunk has already turned heads this year.