Jemseg residents to host flood preparation workshop

While many are ready to shut the door on old man winter, the prospect of warmer temps has people in communities along the St. John River thinking about last year's flood, and worrying about what the next one may look like.

A group of volunteers in Jemseg is taking matters into their own hands by hosting a day-long workshop on Saturday to look at ways to prepare for future flooding.

"The question is on people's minds a lot more than ever before," said Bonnie Hamilton Bogart, who is with Voices for Sustainable Environments and Communities, the group organizing the talk.

The 2018 flood saw historic water levels in communities from Fredericton to Saint John, devastating many communities in the province.

Bogart lives in Gagetown, but says the group hopes to attract people from Burton to Belleisle.

She says the Gagetown Creek by her house is frozen but higher than usual. When that happens she said ice can damage the shoreline and cause more erosion.

"We're living with a bit more unease than we usually do this time of the year."

Bogart said the workshop will give residents the chance to recognize vulnerable areas of their communities and start thinking up solutions and prepare for another flood event.

She said attendees will have the opportunity to examine maps featuring vulnerable infrastructure and access ways so they can get a better sense of their communities from a bird's eye view.

The workshop will include presentations by the Dept. of Environment & Local Government, New Brunswick EMO, and an environmental consulting firm. It will be held at the Jemseg Lions Centre from 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m.