A section of Stoney Trail was closed for several hours Tuesday morning due to relentless rain overnight. Flooding on the roadway shut down southbound Tsuu T’ina Trail from Glenmore Trail to 90th Avenue S.W. Calgary police said it was expected to be closed for most of the morning. Police are also cautioning drivers to take extra caution on their drive in to work with heavy rainfall overnight creating large puddles and pooling of water. The road was reopened at about 12:30 p.m. Defects on Glenmore Trail Another rain-related issue that caused problems for drivers on Tuesday was along Glenmore Trail near Crowchild Trail S.W. The City of Calgary says the pavement broke during the storm and it had to block off a section of the road for repairs. “Ongoing rain is causing some delays,” the city told CTV News in a statement. “The city and its contractors do work around weather and some rainfall is manageable, however Monday evening’s rainfall was quite significant.” Any driver that suffered damage as a result of road work can submit a claim online. Drainage issues Calgary Water Services said it is looking into more than 170 drainage-related calls. It asks people to stay away from streets where there is a lot of water pooling because that water may be deep and it may be hard to see hazards. If water hasn’t drained from a street after two hours, take a photo and submit a “storm drain concern” through 311. Games rescheduled The rain is putting a damper on outdoor sports as well. “Three thousand kids had their final day cancelled due to a massive storm at the end of June, so it’s been a season-long problem,” said Jordan Stewart with the Calgary Minor Soccer Association (CMSA). The CMSA has had to reschedule roughly 400 games—about 10 per cent of the season’s scheduled games. With the season closing soon, some of those make-up games won’t happen after a record year of weather-related impacts. “Last year, we had 220 games that had to be rescheduled, and the majority of those were due to smoke. … This year, it’s double, and it’s all down to rain, predominantly,” Stewart said. Rafting businesses impacted And puddles don’t inspire paddles either. A hot May and early June helped Lazy Day Raft Rentals at the start of the season. “Until July 1, we were on target for setting a record; however, since July 1 hit, the rain started to come and we’re down about 30 per cent year-over-year from July 1 to now,” said Arlin Friesen, owner of Lazy Day Raft Rentals. Rain shut down the business 11 days this season, which is tough for employees and company profits. But the owner of the rafting company sees a silver lining in the storm clouds. “Well, the last few years have been really dry, so I think the water in the Bow watershed is absolutely important. The rain is bad for business, but overall for the community, the river is important. The rain is great,” Friesen said. Friesen says even on Tuesday, when the rafting company was closed due to rain, it was getting bookings for the rest of the summer.
