Saskatchewan and Manitoba Floods – 100s Evacuated

by in Americas

Over the weekend of 28 and 29 June 2014, areas of Saskatchewan and Manitoba, Canada, saw over 200mm of rain fall in just a few hours. In fact in some areas, more rain fell in a 5 hour period than would be seen for the whole of June.

Regina, Saskatchewan, was one of the major casualties after the initial onslaught of rain. Since then excess water drained into the river system and headed downstream, flooding vast areas of Saskatchewan prairie land on its way toward Manitoba.

Saskatchewan Premier, Brad Wall has been visiting parts of the area devastated by floods over the weekend. He said “I have a hard time describing what I saw from the air just in terms of water that is literally everywhere,” He said the estimates of the damage caused by the flooding so far show that it is likely to costs more than the 2011 floods (CAN$360 million).

Although there has been a break in the wet weather, things could still get worse, in particular for Manitobans, who are beginning to feel the pressure of floodwaters from Saskatchewan. High levels of the Qu’Appelle river are expected to force levels of the Assiniboine River in Manitoba even higher.

The torrential downpour over the last few days of June comes on the back of a wet 3 months in the prairies. Ground water levels were already high, leaving the latest spell of heavy rain nowhere to go.

Flood Update

  • 41 Municipalities in Manitoba have called a state of local emergency, including Birtle, Deloraine, Hartney, Melita, Oak Lake, Roblin and Virden
  • 54 Municipalities in Saskatchewan called state of local emergency
  • 500 evacuated from Manitoba, mostly in Virden
  • 300 evacuated in southeastern Saskatchewan
  • Water rescue and helicopter teams are operating in the affected area
  • Disaster assistance office to be set up in Melville, Saskatchewan
  • City of Brandon in Manitoba is also expecting a deluge of water from Saskatchewan over the next few days
  • Pierson (population 250), Manitoba, like many remote communities, is now completely cut off. Evacuation orders meant people had to leave their homes
  • Carievale and Gainsborough in Saskatchewan have been cut off since Monday 30 June 2014
  • A hospital, in Melville had to be evacuated
  • 276 reports of sewer backup in homes in Regina
  • 17 streams and rivers in Manitoba said to be at historic levels
An aerial view of the flooding in Alida, in southeast Saskatchewan Photo by The Canadian Press
An aerial view of the flooding in Alida, in southeast Saskatchewan
Photo by The Canadian Press