Rising floods in southern Manitoba washed away roads and infiltrated homes as sand and pump crews worked to protect property in the region.
In the town of Altona, 92 kilometers southwest of Winnipeg, firefighter Brent Crane said he saw people using a boat to reach houses that were surrounded by water.
“They had a truck parked on the other side of the water and they had a canoe or a small raft that ran through it,” he said.
Crane and another firefighter, Craig Brown, were outside sanding alleys in the area on Monday. They and other volunteers had spent the weekend working with pumps and sandbags in an attempt to keep Buffalo Creek northwest from flooding the city.
Mayor Al Friesen said a resident said the river had risen four feet in one day over the weekend, but water levels appear to have stabilized, at least for now.
“We’re kind of holding on, but time is a big factor in what’s going to happen in the next 24 or 48 hours, or even potentially this weekend,” he said.
Altona Mayor Al Friesen says the city is expected to receive 25,000 sandbags and a kilometer of inflatable tiger dams. (Sam Samson / CBC)
Much of the Red River Valley remains under warning of land floods, according to the Manitoba Hydrological Forecasting Center.
During the weekend, 76 millimeters of rain fell in the area and due to the already saturated soil, the water had nowhere to go – except through people’s fields and basements.
Open fields resembling lakes froze on Monday morning.
Altona is expected to receive 25,000 sacks of sand and a kilometer of inflatable tiger dams delivered on Monday.
CBC meteorologist John Sauder predicts that on Thursday the province will hit another low level in Colorado, which could bring another 10 centimeters of snow and 10 millimeters of rain.
Friesen hopes that the lower temperatures will last long enough to allow some of the water to dissipate.
“If we can melt slowly again, if we can, you know, allow this water to make its way through the system, then that’s a good thing,” Freesen said.
“Little scary”
Dave Carlson, Reeve of Emerson-Franklin County on the US border, says the wild weather this year just doesn’t want to end.
“Especially at this time of year, we just don’t see this water like we usually do. It is usually moved by mid-April, if it is a year of floods, but here we are, almost in May, and we are still working on it, “he said.
It was “a little scary” over the weekend, but the region avoided the weight of the low in Colorado that hit the area last week.
“I think we got out a little easier than in some parts of the west … but now the water levels are completely saturated,” he said.
There are eight closures in the area, but there are no reports of basement flooding so far. The municipality is awaiting information from the province about floods moving north of the United States, and may need to close access points to the city through ring dikes that protect property from the rising Red River.
Some Manitoba residents have shared images of flood-swept roads, such as Huron Road, south of Highway 423 and east of Crystal City, Man.
Wet pic.twitter.com/yrNFn92bQW
– @ landon707
Meanwhile, at DL Seeds’ headquarters outside Morden, employees, their families and people in the area spent the day on Sunday setting up sandbags, but that didn’t stop some water from leaking under doors and buildings.
Despite the work of the sandboxes, some water fell into the buildings at DL Seeds’ headquarters. (Submitted by Tanya Mullin)
Field agronomist Jesse Mutcheson said he was sent photos of the scene, but did not understand the severity of the flood until he arrived.
“It’s something I’ve never seen before,” Mutsson said.
No equipment was damaged by the water, he said, and appreciated the reaction of people, some of whom saw posts about the flood on social media.
“It certainly shows the strength and generosity of the small town, provincial Manitoba,” he said.
After experiencing a drought last year, Mucheson said the flood this spring was a “watch what you wish” scenario, although he did not expect to delay the start of the planting season too much for farmers.
“Some guys like to get their cereal right now, but I think if we have good weather and some sun soon enough, I think people will be surprised at how quickly this water can disappear,” he said.
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