Nicole Hancock
Indigenous community hosts full moon ceremony ...

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.

Indigenous community hosts full moon ceremony to heal Chedoke Creek

ice jams

Ottawa blasts its river ice. What would it take to do the same in the N.W.T.?

Ottawa blasts its river ice. What would it take to do the same in the N.W.T.?

In 1951, a man in Hay River, N.W.T., drowned after the town experienced devastating flooding. The cause of the flooding was the same thing that caused the 2022 floods: ice jams. But a 1988 report by the federal government details that a flood prevention measure that had been used the previous three years wasn't used in 1951. This was the practice of ice blasting, using explosives to blow up river ice and prevent jamming. "Because of the flooding in 1951, an extensive blasting program was undertaken in the spring of 1952," the report said.

Ice jams could lead to unexpected flooding in West Montrose, New Hamburg: GRCA

Ice jams could lead to unexpected flooding in West Montrose, New Hamburg: GRCA

Warm weather that melted snow and rain over the weekend has weakened ice on local waterways, including the Grand River, which could lead to ice jams and unexpected flooding, the Grand River Conservation Authority warns. There is an increased "potential for rapidly changing conditions" on local waterways, the authority said in a flood watch message Monday.

Water levels drop in Gagetown, but St. John River remains at flood stage

Water levels drop in Gagetown, but St. John River remains at flood stage

Water levels along the St. John River have been dropping, despite the rain and snow that fell over the long weekend. In Gagetown, water levels are hovering around flood stage at four metres — that's down from 4.2 metres over the weekend. "There are no real impacts for people at that stage," said Geoffrey Downey, a spokesperson for New Brunswick's River Watch program. Gagetown is the only community forecast to be at or near flood stage this week. Water levels in that area are expected to drop just below flood stage by Wednesday. "It's still being stubborn," he said.

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