Residents across the Pontiac are breathing a sigh of relief as flood levels slowly recede this week thanks to cooler temperatures and dryer weather, while monitoring forecasts closely for signs of a second flood peak.
In its Apr. 23 daily update, the Ottawa River Planning Board said water levels and flows are stabilized or slightly declining between Pembroke, Ont. and Carillon, Que., but that a second wave of flooding in late April and early May is still possible between Mattawa and Montreal.
“The rate of snowmelt in the northern portion of the basin and the potential for rainfall over the coming weeks remain uncertain,” it states. “A rapid melt combined with rainfall could lead to water levels higher than those observed between April 19 and 22 in all locations.”
The recorded water level on Friday, Apr. 24 was 108.43 m in Lac Coulonge, down about 10 cm from where it was on Wednesday, and 75.67 m in Chats Lake (Quyon).
The four-day forecasts show levels will remain steady around 108.50 in Lac Coulonge, and 75.75 in Chats Lake.
Given the unpredictability of the weather and snowmelts over the next two weeks, municipalities are advising residents not remove flood protection measures just yet.
In an Apr. 24 update, the municipality of Fort-Coulonge announced it had lifted the state of emergency it declared on Monday, Apr. 20, but would keep in place the sand dikes it has erected along rue du Bord de l’Eau.
The statement noted the Félix-Gabriel-Marchand red covered bridge is set to reopen soon.
The Parc du Centenaire remains closed at this time, but the pump track is accessible by way of rue Romain.
The neighbouring municipality of Mansfield-et-Pontefract had several public roads flood last week and evacuated some 70 people from their residences over the weekend.
“The trend is encouraging but the municipality remains cautious due to the high uncertainty of hydrological forecasts,” it wrote in an Apr. 22 update shared on Facebook.
The municipality said flooded roads would remain closed, even as water levels drop, because of the debris left behind.
Mayor Sandra Armstrong said in every flood she’s seen, there’s always been a second wave.
“It’s coming. In Temiscamingue there’s still snow,” she said Wednesday.
“We always have at least two peaks,” agreed Mansfield director general Eric Rochon. “Most of the time the second one is the highest.”
‘Warm welcome’ from Mother Nature
Mansfield residents Maurice Joly and Lise Pépin are among those who the municipality offered motel access when the flood rendered their water system unusable.
Joly grew up in Fort-Coulonge, but moved away when he was young and only just moved back to the area with Pépin less than a year ago to retire.
“We will have been here a year in May,” he said, admitting he knew the property they purchased on rue l’Ecuyer was in the flood zone, but was shocked to see how high the waters rose.
At 3 a.m. on Apr. 20, after he’d spent the previous day building a sand dike around part of his property to hold back rising waters, he awoke to discover over a foot of water in his recently renovated basement.
“Mother Nature sent us a warm welcome,” he laughed, highlighting the irony in the fact that he had just completed the finishing touches on his basement – new pool table and all – only days prior.
“It’s rock n’ roll here.”
For now, pumps have kept the water in his basement to about a foot high, but Joly said he’s understood from neighbours that best practice is to let the water in completely, to reduce the pressure on his basement walls.
He and Pépin are doing what they can to raise their belongings so they can do this, keeping in mind there may be a second wave of flooding on the way.
While the couple admitted they are shaken by the scale of the flooding, Joly said the community is home for him and he wants to find a way to stay.
“If I have help from the government, I want to raise my house like my neighbour,” he said. “I don’t want to leave this property. It’s really a beautiful spot.”
