Record rainfall, closed highways, flooded basements, evacuation orders they all came to reality late last month and the first couple of days of this month, evoking memories of similar situations in 2011.
This time around however, the citizens of Estevan were pretty well spared the full brunt of the deluge because regional dams and reservoirs were in no danger of being compromised and no heavy downstream river action took place.
The 2011 flood, generally caused by significant snowpack melt in May followed by heavy June rains, led to the need to release water from Rafferty and Alameda Dams at emergency rates once the rainfall began to add to the volume. This time, it was just the rain, about 65 to 80 mm of it in the immediate area. As a result, a modest 30 m3/s (cubic metres per second) of reservoir drainage was happening at the Alameda Dam site on July 3, while Rafferty stayed close to full level with no significant water release deemed necessary.
The release at Alameda was being done in consultation with downstream water recipients in North Dakota, said Patrick Boyle, spokesman for Saskatchewan's Water Security Agency. This additional flow rate will continue for about another week and should not cause any negative impacts on the downstream users,he said.
"There is no flood event to manage at Boundary and Rafferty Reservoirs, they have been largely unaffected by this event," a follow-up WSA media release added.
But that's not to say other communities in southeast Saskatchewan didn't feel the wrath of Mother Nature, including several close to the Energy City.
Nearly 80 mm of rain fell on other southeastern and east central regions on June 29 alone. That left towns such as Redvers, Gainsborough, Carievale and areas around Regina and the Qu'Appelle valley and lakes, reeling from overflowing waters.
The Sun Country Health Region was prompted to evacuate 16 patients and residents at the Gainsborough Health Centre on June 29. The residents were first taken to the community hall. Arrangements were then made to move a couple to Moose Mountain Lodge in Carlyle, six were transferred to Weyburn's Special Care Home and four went to Sunset Haven in Carnduff by wheelchair van. Four others were able to find refuge with their families on a temporary basis.
Marga Cugnet CEO of Sun Country, said the situation in Gainsborough was monitored continually. She said Larry Redpath, the centre's maintenance director was especially vigilant in tending to sump pumps and security concerns around the clock. "I'm sure it was a tough two-three days for him." Cugnet said the evacuation process went smoothly thanks to a well-built emergency response plan and the professionalism of the centre's staff and volunteers, while noting that each client sent out of the centre did not leave without their medical charts, medications and care plans.
"The crawl space under the building was flooded, but I don't believe the water reached main floor level," said Cugnet, saying the extent of the damage to the Gainsborough facility won't be assessed until the water levels drop.
"Maryfield's primary care clinic was also at risk for some time, but no damage had been assessed by July 4. It was like Redvers, where the main concern was emergency medical service, knowing what routes would be open if an ambulance needed to get there. STARS were also alerted to our situation," she said, referring to the air ambulance service. As it turned out, there were no weekend emergency dispatches required from a health region perspective in those towns since most of the vulnerable residents had already been tended to.
Tetanus inoculations were made available to those who needed to work on plumbing issues.
"The power remained on, which helped as did the gas so the transitions went smoothly," Cugnet noted.
Mental health professionals were dispatched to Carnduff on July 2 to assist those who might require assistance due to the stress. This was done in co-ordination with the Red Cross.
"They were able to keep the north road open to Redvers. I know there were some concerns regarding our food and linen trucks getting through, but that was just for a day," said the CEO. Staff members getting to and from work in Redvers, also became a problem that was again, handled effectively through a central dispatch plan. Drinking water issues were also monitored closely, she added.
With the waters expected to begin to recede on July 4, the worst-case scenario was probably over, in terms of emergency responses. But the heart wrenching work of recovery and application for Saskatchewan PDAP (personal disaster assistance program) funding began.
Citizens around Crooked Lake and the other Qu'Appelle Valley lakes and communities were not so lucky. Boyle noted that Crooked Lake was on the rise to above record levels by July 5 while Round and Last Mountain Lakes were also going to meet or exceed 2011 levels or 1.3 metres above normal. Echo Lake was to rise slightly above normal, while Katepwa Lake had already begun to lower by July 3.
"Now we have to watch for thunder showers," said Duane McKay, emergency measures and fire safety co-ordinator. "But we expect stabilized water flows from July 3 on."
McKay noted that oilpatch pumpjacks in flooded areas were shut down and no contamination issues had surfaced as of July 2, and outside of the obvious economic impact, there should not be additional concerns on that front. He said storage tanks are placed on higher ground so the only issue for the oil industry would be gaining access to a pumpjack site if required.
While the highway systems immediately around Estevan remains open, unlike during the flood of 2011, there were several road closures in other regions, said Doug Wakabayashi, spokesman for Saskatchewan Highways and Infrastructure.
"We saw some improvement in situations around Esterhazy, Rocanville, Yorkton and Melville," he said on July 3 adding Highway 10 between Melville and Yorkton was re-opened while Balcarres to Melville remained closed as of July 4.
Temporary bridges were being put in place, including one near Storthoaks, that would help ease traffic woes and materials were being stockpiled on July 2, for temporary repairs. Wakabayashi warned that soft spots and potholes can be found almost everywhere on the re-opened roads as would soft side slopes and shoulders of many highways and grid structures. He added shoulders on some highways were definitely gone. He said local drivers were using a system of back roads and municipal roads to get in and out of Gainsborough and Carievale.
As the waters rose in Gainsborough, an evacuation order was observed for the entire community of 250 and at least one home in Alida was listed as being destroyed by flood waters. Across Saskatchewan and western Manitoba, about 800 people were ordered to be evaculated due to the water.
Garnet Matchett, director of emergency operations for the Health Ministry, said the Red Cross was dispensing clean-up kits and the food and linen problems for Sun Country sites in Oxbow, Carievale and Carnduff were being addressed and routes were found. Potable water sources were identified, he said.
Lieut. Brian Bobolo of the Estevan and Weyburn Salvation Army service team, said they had been shipping fresh drinking water to Carnduff, Carievale and Gainsborough. They would continue to monitor conditions as they evolved over the next few days and perhaps weeks to offer assistance to those who have been impacted by the flood.
Margaret Anderson, executive director for PDAP, said that by July 3, 114 communities, including 16 First Nations, had applied for the disaster assistance that is provided for damages to uninsurable essential properties. As of July 3, 37 had been approved.
Vanessa Beaupre, communications officer for SaskEnergy said that at the peak of the flood, 650 homes had been cut off from their natural gas supply lines for safety reasons, but by July 3, 350 of those had already been restored.
According to Environment Canada, Saskatchewan received rain on 18 of the 30 days in June, about five more than usual. The usual amount of rain received in June is just shy of 71 mm. This year in June, Saskatchewan received 195 mm of rain, thus prompting the need for 54 provincial communities to declare a state of emergency. This will supposedly require well in excess of $360 million in provincial and federal sourced recovery funds, which was the amount spent on the 2011 recovery efforts, said Premier Brad Wall, who visited the various flood-damaged regions in early July.
