protected from the rising Red River by it's ring dike on Wednesday.
Photograph by: Fred Greenslade/Reuters
(Click on the picture for a larger image)
Canwest News Service
WINNIPEG -- More homes were being evacuated and more roads were becoming impassable in southern Manitoba on Wednesday as the province was swamped by overland flooding and rising rivers.
This spring’s flooding, now being called the third worst Manitoba had seen in a century, was doing considerable damage on the province’s largest First Nation, where 43 homes had been affected.
Eighteen people from Peguis First Nation were forced to leave the community, with help from the Manitoba Association of Native Fire Fighters, and evacuation is a possibility for another 70 residents, officials said.
The reserve, located about 190 kilometres north of Winnipeg, declared a state of emergency late Tuesday night for its 7,000 residents.
This year’s Manitoba flood has now surpassed 1979 levels to become the third worst in the last 100 years, behind 1950 and 1997, provincial officials said.
Manitoba Emergency Measures Minister Steve Ashton said the flood has had a significant impact on Manitobans, and that the fight was far from over.
“This is ongoing and we can’t let our guard down,” Mr. Ashton said.
Ice jams, a rapid melt and overland flooding from tributaries have combined to push this year’s crest 15 centimetres higher than 1979 levels, Mr. Ashton said.
A number of roads have been washed out around the province.
Manitoba had 37 steamers working to thaw frozen culverts and drains across the southern part of the province.
The City of Winnipeg also sent a diver into the icy waters of the Red River on Tuesday night to clear out a blocked drain that had caused overland flooding in the Fort Whyte area.
Debris in the river had prevented the grate from opening, causing flooding and washouts, said Coun. Bill Clement.
After the diver attached hooks, the grate was removed “by the largest tow truck” the city could find, he said.
Water levels have receded 10 centimetres in the flooded area since the grate was removed, he said.
Photograph by: Fred Greenslade, Reuters, Canwest News Service
(Click on the picture for a larger image)
The Fisher River First Nation removed nine people from its personal-care home, located about 70 kilometres north of Winnipeg.
Meanwhile, three homes were evacuated from the Boundary Creek/Winnipeg Beach area, about 75 kilometres north of the provincial capital, and the residents of about 10 homes around Rock Lake voluntarily decided to leave.
North of Winnipeg, Ashton said the 2009 flood was the worst in 100 years for areas like Breezy Point and the rural municipality of St. Clements, where a rapid rise in flood water due to ice jams prompted a mandatory evacuation of the community last weekend.
There was also significant overland flooding Wednesday across the Interlake region, affecting roads and crossings throughout the area.
The federal government is expected to help pay for disaster relief under its standard cost-shared program with provinces. It will help cover the cost of repairing bridges, roads and homes that have been damaged by flood waters and massive ice jams.
The 2009 flood season has claimed two lives so far. RCMP and family members were searching the banks of the Woody River, about 500 kilometres northwest of Winnipeg, this week for the body of Glen Silverthorn, 82, presumed drowned when his vehicle was swept into the river Sunday.
The body of his 79-year-old wife, Mary, was found Sunday, nearly 15 kilometres downstream from where the couple’s empty vehicle was found by searchers near a river crossing.
Winnipeg Free Press
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