Recalling Quebec's 2019 floods that left 10,500 temporarily homeless
This Day In Weather History is a daily podcast by Chris Mei from The Weather Network, featuring stories about people, communities and events and how weather impacted them.
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When you think of classic Quebec weather, snowstorms may be the prevailing mental picture. However, in 2019, the headlining weather event was extreme flooding.
The cause of the catastrophic flooding did start in the province's notable winter. It was a cold and snowy season, so the ground was frozen solid. Toward the end of April, it poured in areas of Quebec.
FATAL ACCIDENT : A road was washed during the night because of the spring flooding in the @MuniPontiac and a vehicle fell into the creek. Accident under investigation, more details to come #policemrc pic.twitter.com/1SpSkLJaKY
FATAL ACCIDENT : A road was washed during the night because of the spring flooding in the PoliceMRCdesCollines on Twitter: "FATAL ACCIDENT : A road was washed during the night because of the spring flooding in the @MuniPontiac and a vehicle fell into the creek. Accident under investigation, more details to come #policemrc pic.twitter.com/1SpSkLJaKY / Twitter" and a vehicle fell into the creek. Accident under investigation, more details to come PoliceMRCdesCollines on Twitter: "FATAL ACCIDENT : A road was washed during the night because of the spring flooding in the @MuniPontiac and a vehicle fell into the creek. Accident under investigation, more details to come #policemrc pic.twitter.com/1SpSkLJaKY / Twitter" PoliceMRCdesCollines on Twitter: "FATAL ACCIDENT : A road was washed during the night because of the spring flooding in the @MuniPontiac and a vehicle fell into the creek. Accident under investigation, more details to come #policemrc pic.twitter.com/1SpSkLJaKY / Twitter"
— PoliceMRCdesCollines (@Police_MRC) PoliceMRCdesCollines on Twitter: "FATAL ACCIDENT : A road was washed during the night because of the spring flooding in the @MuniPontiac and a vehicle fell into the creek. Accident under investigation, more details to come #policemrc pic.twitter.com/1SpSkLJaKY / Twitter"
The residents of Grenville-sur-la-Rouge, Que., evacuated when a local dam seemed it wouldn't hold. On April 27, some residents of Ste-Marthe-sur-le-Lac evacuated when a dike broke.
Throughout the province, 310 municipalities were affected and 10,500 people had to leave their homes.
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As of April 30, 9,070 homes and 273 businesses were flooded. The conditions also cause 82 landslides; 760 roads and highways were either completely destroyed or heavily damaged.
More than 1,000 soldiers were sent to support impacted areas. The Canadian Red Cross also set up respite stations to help those displaced by the floods.
Inondations à Rigaud : Nos policiers patrouillent les secteurs touchés avec un véhicule tout-terrain amphibie de type Argo. pic.twitter.com/Jni9iPYmzh
Sûreté du Québec on Twitter: "#Inondations à Rigaud : Nos policiers patrouillent les secteurs touchés avec un véhicule tout-terrain amphibie de type Argo. pic.twitter.com/Jni9iPYmzh / Twitter" à Rigaud : Nos policiers patrouillent les secteurs touchés avec un véhicule tout-terrain amphibie de type Argo. Sûreté du Québec on Twitter: "#Inondations à Rigaud : Nos policiers patrouillent les secteurs touchés avec un véhicule tout-terrain amphibie de type Argo. pic.twitter.com/Jni9iPYmzh / Twitter"
— Sûreté du Québec (@sureteduquebec) Sûreté du Québec on Twitter: "#Inondations à Rigaud : Nos policiers patrouillent les secteurs touchés avec un véhicule tout-terrain amphibie de type Argo. pic.twitter.com/Jni9iPYmzh / Twitter"
The Quebec government provided $26 million to flood victims. According to the Insurance Bureau of Canada, $185 million worth of claims were filed as a result of the flooding.
To learn more about Quebec's 2019 flood, listen to today's episode of "This Day In Weather History."
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Thumbnail: Parc Belmont Cartierville. Courtesy of UploadWizard/Wikipedia