City officials and others throughout Quinte West are sandbagging after heavy rainfall Thursday in hopes of avoiding flooding similar to 2017. Photo by Ryan Peddigrew, QNet News.
By Ryan Peddigrew [1]
QUINTE WEST – People have started sandbagging with water levels rising and another week of rain ahead, after Thursday night’s barrage of rain saw Quinte West get 23.6 millimetres of rain.
The emergency control group for Belleville met Friday morning to assess the situation regarding the rising water levels, according to a Tweet from the city. [2]
Brian Ostrander, mayor of Brighton, posted on Twitter [3] asking for volunteers to help start sandbagging. Sections of the Bayshore Trail have also been sandbagged off by city officials with water working its way onto the path.
In the last 10 days of April, Quinte West saw six days with rain [4] including 22.4 millimetres on the 26th. A combination of heavy rainfall into Ontario’s river and lake systems, the spring melt into Lake Ontario and the Trent River and the inflow from Lake Erie has caused water levels to rise nearly to those seen in the 2017 flooding, with more rain in store next week.
Josh Cooney, 21, of Glen Ross, just north of Frankford, says while the flooding so far this year hasn’t quite reached the level it did in 2017, the heavy rainfall expected to hit the Quinte Region could push it there. The Weather Network says to expect about 20 millimetres of rain on Monday alone.
“This is probably the second-worst I’ve seen it. Back in 2017, obviously it was much worse. But, I’d say this is a little bit worse than it was last year. But, there’s still more rain to come. So it could get worse,” said Cooney.
Earlier this week the water was fairly deep across his entire back lawn right up to the deck, he said.
Lorraine Blakely, franchisee of Freshco in Trenton, says that in 2017 her husband was up around the clock working to keep the water pumps going to keep the parking lot of the grocery store from flooding. She says the city has been a great help Friday as well and thanked her customers for their continued patience and understanding.
As of Monday, Lower Trent Conservation updated flood warnings for Rice Lake and the Trent River. Lake Ontario has been on a flood watch since April 26. Gage Comeau, water resources specialist, and regulations officer, says the situation will all depend on the intensity of the rainfall.
“So it will depend on how fast it comes. If it is throughout the whole day, typically we will see spikes in our local creeks, Trent River will likely see some slight fluctuations, as well as Rice Lake,” he said.
Depending on how widespread the system is it could cause some rise on Lake Ontario, he added.
It is important residents living near these bodies of water are prepared and have information on the flood risk within the area, he said.
“People should be prepared and know if they are in a floodplain or a flood hazard. They should potentially start sandbagging if they can,” he said.
Many people choose to get sandbagging when weather like this comes around. Cooney says he and his family hadn’t even thought of it.
“We don’t do much of that really. Kind of just let the water come in and come out as it goes,” he said while looking out onto his water-logged back lawn at his house on the Trent River in Glen Ross.
The city of Quinte West says sand and sandbags are available at 177 North Murray St., in Trenton and 96 Wolfe St., in Frankford.
Flood status updates are available online on the Lower Trent Conservation [5] website but for access to watershed maps of the area you need to contact Lower Trent Conservation directly. Access to sandbags to help fend off water and information about flood emergency plans are available through municipalities.