Spring flooding: The situation should stabilize by Monday in Gatineau
Gatineau, May 7, 2017. – Since this morning, members of the Canadian Armed Forces have been helping Gatineau's municipal employees. Ville de Gatineau is continuing to watch waterways. It should be noted that, as of Monday, the spring flooding should stabilize and reach a plateau.
Teams of the ground
| ● | City employees are deployed on the ground and have been working hard 24 hours a day since May 1.
o More than 900 Ville de Gatineau employees are taking turns day and night.
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| ● | 20 military force members and five trucks have been providing support to the municipal teams on the ground since this morning.
o As of tomorrow, a total of 80 military force members will be in Gatineau to carry out various tasks.
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Status report
| ● | A 7 cm rise is expected at the Hull marina by Monday. A plateau should follow. |
| ● | Water levels are expected to come down gradually and slowly. |
| ● | Gatineau is watching the situation closely and continues to review its actions on the ground depending on how the situation unfolds. |
Street closures and impacts on residents
| ● | A coordination committee made up of Ville de Gatineau, Sûreté du Québec, ministère des Transports du Québec and STO is working on a traffic plan. The plan will be unveiled by the end of the day, including where Highway 50 is concerned. |
| ● | In order to lighten the load on roads, it is strongly recommended that residents use public transportation and carpooling to get to work tomorrow. |
| ● | Residents are urged to avoid driving around the city unnecessarily, in an effort to ease the flow for emergency vehicles. |
| ● | Considering the many street closures, residents are urged to work from home tomorrow whenever possible. |
| ● | For the safety of everyone on the roads, motorists are asked to let patrol officers and the signage in place guide them. |
| ● | Before heading out, residents should consult the map of flooded streets on the municipal website. |
| ● | The status of closed or affected streets may change quickly depending on how the situation unfolds. |
| ● | Patrol officers from Service de police are deployed to manage traffic. It is important to follow the temporary signage and barricades in place. |
Highway 50 and Fournier Boulevard
| ● | As a reminder, Highway 50 is closed to traffic:
o Eastbound, between Montcalm Street and Highway 5. Detour via Maisonneuve Boulevard.
o Westbound, mandatory exit at La Gappe. Detours are in place.
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| ● | Work is ongoing on the Draveurs Bridge to attempt to open one or two lanes westbound. |
| ● | Rockfilling work on Fournier Boulevard is ongoing to raise the road and maintain traffic lanes. |
Volunteers
| ● | Residents wishing to help fill sandbags can go to Aréna Campeau until 7 p.m.
o Aréna Campeau is located at 165 Des Sables Street.
o It is recommended to bring your shovel and gloves.
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| ● | Since this morning, around 1,500 volunteers have shown up at Aréna Campeau to fill sandbags. |
| ● | Gatineau would like to thank volunteers for their involvement! |
Voluntary and preventive evacuations
| ● | Gatineau is urging residents to prepare to evacuate their homes, if they have not already done so. |
| ● | Flood victims requiring assistance to leave their homes should dial 311. |
| ● | Among other things, firefighters are continuing to help flood victims during evacuations. |
| ● | As a reminder, ministère de la Sécurité publique has confirmed an agreement with the Red Cross concerning the care of flood victims. |
Donations to the Red Cross and other organizations
| ● | Businesses wishing to donate clothing, food or other goods should contact the Red Cross: 1 800 363-7305, extension 3622980. |
| ● | For any other type of help, residents should contact the usual community organizations, such as Saint-Vincent-de-Paul and food banks. Donations will not be accepted directly at the centres for flood victims. |
Statistics
Evacuations
| ● | Number of homes evacuated by Service de sécurité incendie: 411 |
| ● | Persons evacuated on a voluntary basis by Service de sécurité incendie: 741 |
| ● | Persons awaiting voluntary evacuation by Service de sécurité incendie: 22 |
| ● | Persons being looked after by the Red Cross: 708
o Jean-René-Monette: 618
o Masson-Angers: 90
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Sandbags
| ● | Number of sandbags distributed since April 18: more than 286,000. |
| ● | Number of empty bags ready to be filled: 50,000. |
| ● | Number of bags expected tomorrow: 20,000. More bags are on order. |
Information to residents
| ● | People registered for text alerts: 3,886 |
| ● | Visits to the flooding webpage: 74,804 (since May 1)
o Average time spent on the page: 1 minute 57 seconds
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Interviews since April 18: 95
Non-emergency call centre (311)
| ● | 7,490 calls from May 1 to 7 at midnight |
| ● | 712 calls on May 7 since midnight |
Note
Statistics for this news release were last updated at 2:30 p.m. on Sunday, May 7, 2017. These are the latest statistics available.
Associated links
Map of flooded streets and sandbag distribution sites
Webpage on spring flooding
STO – Update on services – webpage on spring flooding in Gatineau:
Webpage on floods
Webpage on sewer back-ups
Fact sheet on sewer back-ups during a flood
Images
