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Spring flooding will get worse before it gets better, officials say

Rigaud
RigaudMatt Gilmour (CJAD 800)
Officials continue to monitor water levels along the MilleÎles river and the Riviere des Prairies, as riverside residents brace for flooding that officials say could get worse before it gets better.

Officials continue to monitor water levels along the Mille-Îles river and the Rivière des Prairies, as riverside residents brace for flooding that officials say could get worse before it gets better.

The heavy rains over the long Easter weekend have now given way to sunshine and mild temperatures in the Montreal area, but flood waters continue to rise. And with more rain in the forecast for later this week, officials are warning the worst is yet to come.

"There will doubtless be more flooding to come,'' Quebec Public Security Minister Genevieve Guilbault told reporters in Yamachiche, about 100 kilometres northeast of Montreal. ``The weather, the temperature, the melting snow —  and with a water level that is already high — what we can do is prepare the best we can.''

She thanked Canadian Forces members, who on Sunday had helped fill 4,000 sandbags and continued to provide help Monday.

Down the Ottawa river in Rigaud, fire chief Daniel Boyer said a light armoured vehicle was called in to help with the evacuation of a couple who required medical attention. He said the Army vehicle was able to transport paramedics to the couple's home and get them to safety.

"That is a large part of the reason of why the Army is with us,'' Boyer said. "The request was made for light armoured vehicles because, at the moment, emergency vehicles can no longer pass in certain places.''

Rigaud Mayor Hans Gruenwald Jr. said residents are taking warnings more seriously than they did when flooding last hit the region in 2017.

"People are a lot more co-operative,'' he said. "They understand, and they are totally surprised there is already another flood so close to the last in 2017. Everything is better organized.''

Late last week, Gruenwald suggested that people clear out of their homes for their own safety, suggesting people who stay behind shouldn't expect to be rescued if the worst happens — adding he shouldn't be expected to put the lives of rescuers at risk.

-With files from the Canadian Press.

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