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.
First Onsite Property Restoration, Canada’s leading property restoration company, marks the end of winter and first day of spring (next week, March 20) with the release of The Spring Melt, a survey that examines Canadians’ concerns, perceptions, and property readiness amid ever-changing weather patterns. Commissioned by First Onsite, the survey of more than 1500 Canadian adults found that three-in-five people are worried about the damage caused by severe rains and flooding (58%).
A draft report on flooding in the Rainy River area of Ontario last year recommends the International Rainy-Lake of the Woods Watershed Board look into the development of a new app that would provide easy access to information about the area's watershed. The board's Water Levels Committee, which has both a Canadian and U.S. component, released the report on its website on Friday. It sheds light on the spring 2022 flooding and includes recommendations on how to better handle any such disasters in the future.
Devastating flooding last spring has many in the farming community around Hay River, N.W.T., contemplating their future. Andrew Cassidy and Helen Green, owners of Greenwood Gardens, are still deciding on their next move as they grapple with what's left of their home and business after floodwaters tore through the Paradise Gardens valley in May. "The flooding was really damaging, like it washed away soil, it washed away our raised beds," Cassidy said.
The N.W.T. government says it expects flood recovery for Hay River and the Kátł'odeeche Fırst Nation to cost more than $174 million. That figure comes from a report tabled last week in the Legislative Assembly. The report shows the government expects to spend $112.4 million by the end of this fiscal year, and an additional $61.7 million over the next fiscal year, to cover damages and losses from the flood that swept through those communities this past spring. The town, along with surrounding First Nations, experienced historic flooding in May that forced residents to evacuate. Floodwaters damaged roads, homes and key infrastructure — like water treatment plant lines and the landfill.
While communities in southern Manitoba battle flooding from the Red and Assiniboine rivers, people in the Interlake region are scrambling to save their homes from rising waters. Overland flooding from the Icelandic River, which runs into Lake Winnipeg, has washed out many roads and drenched fields in the municipality of Bifrost-Riverton. That municipality includes the community of Riverton and numerous hamlets, and surrounds the town of Arborg, about 100 kilometres north of Winnipeg.
The mayor of Fort Simpson, N.W.T. said he is feeling trepidation as May approaches, after the community dealt with devastating flooding that time last year. Sean Whelly said the combination of snowfall and water levels, plus a late spring is raising anxieties in the town. "We've been warned by the territorial government that we're at high risk to experience some flooding again this year, so we're concerned," he said.
It's too early to predict flooding, but the Lakehead Region Conservation Authority is keeping a close eye on snow depth in the Thunder Bay area. Measurements taken Tuesday at three LRCA monitoring stations found the current snow depth ranging between 65 and 84 centimetres. That's 54 per cent greater than the average depth measured on March l over the past 48 years. The surveys were done near McVicar Creek in the city, the Pennock Drive area in Rosslyn, and at Hazelwood Lake. Tammy Cook, the CAO of the conservation authority, says an exceptionally snowy winter doesn't necessarily result in flooding.
The Great Lakes has had a history of high water levels in the spring, posing a significant threat for flooding and shoreline erosion. So, will they be a problem again this spring? In the last 12 months, precipitation has been anywhere between 10-20 per cent below average. However, a lack of precipitation doesn't mean that the lake levels are going to drop in a "big way" immediately, says Weather Network meteorologist and Storm Hunter Mark Robinson.
