Authorities are once again preparing for floods in Gatineau, Quebec, and several parts of the city are now at risk.
The city was informed of the rapidly rising water levels in Baskatong Dam by civil security officials the day before, Mayor Frans Belis told a news conference Monday.
“We got 130 millimeters of water in 10 days. Usually we only get 80 millimeters in the same period,” she told reporters in French.
“High temperatures and heavy snowmelt in the northern part of the catchment are raising levels,” she said, adding that the water in the reservoir had risen faster than officials had originally expected.
“The water must be gradually released from the tank to avoid mechanical damage.”
People living on the edge of the Gatineau on the streets of Saint-Louis and Jacques-Cartier must remain on high alert, the city said in a statement shared Monday night.
Residents will be able to start collecting sandbags in several places from noon on Tuesday.
Several other neighborhoods are at moderate risk of flooding, the city said, including the area south of Saint-Sauveur between Saint-Patrice and Sanscartier, among a handful of other streets that stretch across the river.
People living at the mouth of the Gatineau and Ottawa rivers need to stay alert, city officials say. (City of Gatineau)
“The most risky sector is along the mouth of the Gatineau River and the Ottawa River,” said Denis Dussett, the city’s emergency coordinator.
Since then, an emergency coordination center has been established in the city.
Experiencing the same nightmare
This is the third time in six years that the city has been at risk of flooding, with major floods in 2017 and 2019.
For Belis, this will be her first time dealing with a natural disaster since she was elected in November 2021. She said she is trying to remain optimistic.
“I want to remind citizens that, unfortunately, we have experience with this. You will see us on your streets, especially on Cartier and on certain streets in Pointe-Gatineau. We will visit places that have been affected in the past, “she said.
Residents travel by boat on a street near the Gatineau River during the devastating floods of 2019 (Albert Leung / CBC)
Officials in the Outaouais area outside Gatineau have been on alert since Friday, when Gatineau River waters reached critical levels.
Rising waters prompted the evacuation of the Foyer Père-Guinard long-term care home, which has 68 residents, on the same day.
The facility is located on the Desert River, a branch of the Gatineau River. A flood dike has been built around it.
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