Part of Halifax couple's home fills with groundwater after storm
A Halifax-area couple is facing an expensive repair bill after groundwater seeped into the garage and basement of their home on Sunday.
“It's done quite a bit of damage. All the insulation had to come out, all the drywall,” said Patrick Ward.
The couple says the repair bills to their Bedford home have already climbed to $10,000 and their insurance company refuses to cover it because the flood was caused by groundwater.
"If a tree falls on your roof and you get rain in your house, you're covered. Ice dam water backup from your shingles, you're covered. But groundwater, nobody covers that [that] I know of," said Ian McKenzie.
When McKenzie and Ward moved into their home three years ago, they made a point to have the storm drain in front of the house placed on the city's priority list. That means it's supposed to be cleaned within 24 hours of a storm. However, many other drains in the neighbourhood aren't on that same list.
The problem this poses is that a couple of streets away, storm drains are hidden somewhere under some ice banks. Because they are located at the bottom of a hill, when it rains, there's nowhere for the water to go except downhill.
The couple offered to pay a private contractor to clear the neighbourhood drains, but the contractor said he couldn't do the work since it's technically city property.
The municipality says McKenzie and Ward should save every receipt — which they have done — and submit a claim. Each claim is then reviewed on a case-by-case basis, and investigated.
