PERTH-ANDOVER, N.B. -- A state of emergency remained in effect late Sunday in a western New Brunswick community where a massive ice jam was putting homes and businesses at risk of flooding.
New Brunswick's Emergency Measures Organization said Perth-Andover was at risk of flooding because of ice build-up on the Saint John river.
Perth-Andover village official Dan Dionne said roughly 300 people were affected by a mandatory evacuation of low-lying areas declared Saturday night.
The Canadian Red Cross says most of the people evacuated Saturday night are staying with friends and family, but some spent the night at a temporary shelter set up at a local school.
The village announced on its website Sunday that the evacuation order remained in effect, even though water levels fell nearly two metres on Sunday thanks to the ice jam shifting further downstream.
However it noted more ice remained upstream, a situation similar to 2012 when a flood destroyed 75 buildings in the community.
"The flood of 2012 was a similar to this event, in that the water levels dropped (1.5 metres) over night and the next afternoon... we had record high water levels in the community."
The danger will only be over when all of the ice in the river has floated by the community, the village said.
