Manitoba to open Red River Floodway amid flood worries
The Manitoba government says it will start operating the Red River Floodway tomorrow to protect homes in Winnipeg from overland flooding that has forced at least 200 people out of their homes in other parts of the province
Because of greater than normal river flows, the floodway will start operating at 9 a.m. CT Tuesday, according to the province.
Steve Ashton, Manitoba's minister responsible for emergency measures, said heavy rainfall this past weekend has led to flooding and record water levels in 13 southern Manitoba rivers and streams.
Ashton said the province will control the amount of water flowing into the Red River Floodway, which was built in 1968 to help protect Winnipeg homes and infrastructure from the river when it rises.
"Relatively minimal flows at this point in time but, again, we are concerned about impacts in the City of Winnipeg," Ashton told reporters on Monday.
The province's announcement came as the number of municipalities that have declared a state of local emergency in Manitoba's flood-beaten southwest and Interlake areas has risen to 33.
The southwestern corner of Manitoba, near the Saskatchewan border, has been pummelled by rain since Friday with amounts as high as 151 millimetres.
The Town and Rural Municipality of Birtle declared local states of emergency on Monday afternoon, adding to a list of municipalities that includes Archie, Arthur, Blanshard, Brandon (city), Brenda, Cameron, Coldwell, Cornwallis, Daly, Deloraine (town), Edward, Elkhorn (village), Hamiota, Hartney (town), Grahamdale, Melita (town), Miniota, Oak Lake (town), Pipestone, Roblin (town), Shellmouth-Boulton, Sifton, Siglunes, the Sioux Valley Dakota Nation, Strathclair, Virden (town), Wallace, Westbourne, Whitewater, Winchester, and Woodworth.
The provincial government estimates about 200 people in the affected areas have moved out of their homes.
"Over the last 72 hours we've gone into working overtime, 24/7, to get the kind of resources the municipalities need to deal with the various different circumstances they are faced with," Ashton said.
The Brandon area received more than 125 millimetres of rain between Friday and Monday morning, and more is expected.
Environment Canada is calling for 10 to 15 millimetres on Monday and a 60 per cent chance of rain on Tuesday, with skies expected to clear in the late afternoon.
"Most people think of high water [and] they think of the Assiniboine River here in Brandon, but this is overland flooding," Mayor Shari Decter Hirst told CBC News late Sunday afternoon.
"A lot of our ditches, storm sewers, retention ponds, streets are full of water."
A flood warning remains in effect Monday for the Assiniboine River from the Shellmouth Dam to Brandon, as well as the Winnipeg River system, the Little Saskatchewan River near Rivers, Man., and numerous creeks and rivers in the southwest.
Both Lake Manitoba and Lake Winnipeg are under a flood watch as of Monday, and the Red, Souris and Saskatchewan rivers are under high water advisories.
In addition to the Red River Floodway, the province has also started operating the Portage Diversion, a flood control structure, on the Assiniboine River, and officials plan to open the Lake St. Martin emergency outlet on Wednesday.
Floodwaters have closed all highways and roads in and out of Pierson, a community in the Rural Municipality of Edward.
Municipal Coun. Debbie McMechan said 17 rural families have been forced out of their homes, while an expectant couple from the town of Pierson left as well.
"One family from the town of Pierson, because she was expecting and we have no hospital here … [she] and her husband have gone," McMechan said.
"I believe the're trying to make it to Brandon. So we were very concerned about them."
McMechan said the local government has filed a formal request for an emergency helicopter in the event that someone needs emergency medical care.
A number of roads in all the affected municipalities have been closed or breached by floodwater. As well, the Manitoba government has closed numerous sections of highways due to washed-out roads.
"It basically rained all night, quite heavy, and then a lot of overland flooding happening," said Bob Brown, a councillor with the Regional Municipality of Cornwallis. “The culvert systems … can't handle the water."
Over in Virden, Man., peole worked through Sunday night getting sandbags filled and stacked to protect homes along the Gopher Creek.
Nicole Hunter said water backed up into her basement and the situation has been overwhelming.
"Yeah, I've had a couple of cry moments, but what can we do? We're doing all we can do, and that's all we can do," she said.
Closed highways include:
Trans-Canada Highway from Brandon to Highway 110.
Highway 3 from Pierson to the south junction of Highway 83.
Highway 21, from the north junction of Highway 23, to Highway 2.
A complete, updated list of closed roads can be found on the province's 511 website.
High water in eastern Manitoba also has people scrambling to protect property along the Winnipeg River at Otter Falls Resort, near Seven Sisters Falls on the river, in Whiteshell Provincial Park.
Lori Derksen, who owns and operates the resort with her husband, said several sections of the campground are under water.
The river is higher than anyone can remember, and crews have set out sandbags and aqua dams to protect the property.
The province has also provided sandbags to 30 cottagers around Nutimik Lake, Dorothy Lake and Eleanor Lake in the Whiteshell.
Environment Canada says the intense storm system dumped between 75 and 124 millimetres of rain on southwest Manitoba over the weekend.
The weather agency released a list of rainfall totals, recorded between Friday and 7 a.m. Monday, in the following communities:
Deloraine — 151 mm
Virden — 140 mm
Pierson — 133 mm
Brandon Airport — 127 mm
Moosehorn — 122 mm
Hargrave — 115 mm
Eriksdale — 111 mm
Boissevain — 110 mm
Reston — 107 mm
Neepawa — 104 mm
Birtle — 101 mm
Hamiota — 98 mm
Forrest — 97 mm
Dauphin — 95 mm
Souris — 95 mm
Russell — 95 mm
Melita — 89 mm
Minnedosa — 79 mm
Shoal Lake — 78 mm
Wasagaming — 78 mm
Roblin — 71 mm
Winnipeg — 50 mm
Total rainfall for the month of June in Brandon is now 240 mm, making it second-wettest month in the city since records began in 1890. The wettest month on record was June 1902 at 258 mm.