Kristen Villebrun and Wendy Bush hoped they wouldn't have to pray for Chedoke Creek, but four years after they first raised alarm about the water's condition, they were part of an Indigenous full moon ceremony to do just that. About 50 people showed up near Princess Point on the dark and frigid Monday evening for the monthly ceremony, which was particularly special as it focused on Chedoke Creek. The body of water that runs into Cootes Paradise had about 24 billion litres of sewage and storm water runoff leak into it due to a gate being left open.
Officials say they're still monitoring water levels along the Gatineau River but don't believe it will flood in the immediate Gatineau, Que., area in the short term. Many of the city's residents were bracing for water levels to surpass the area's flooding threshold, but on Friday officials downgraded the emergency alert level, saying they were now simply monitoring the situation.
