A provincial flood watch remains in effect in Ontario, where communities in the northeast corner of the province and around the Ottawa River are seeing water levels rise.
Officials are warning that warm temperatures forecasted for the week will spur the annual spring melt, causing water levels to rise.
The Ministry of Natural Resources noted on Monday that a number of rivers have already reached their peak level, and in some cases are beginning to decline.
However, officials warned that rivers in the province’s far north are continuing to experience ice break-up, with water levels reaching -- and even surpassing -- critical levels.
“Very high flows and ice-jams are occurring, specifically in the Moosonee and Moose Factory communities. Flows continue to increase on the Ekwan River, Albany River and Attawapiskat,” the ministry said in a statement.
In the remote northern Ontario community of Kashechewan, located near James Bay, about 300 residents were airlifted to Thunder Bay on Sunday.
The First Nation community declared a state of emergency on Sunday due to flooding of the Albany River. Last week, 240 residents of Kashechewan were evacuated after flooding caused sewer backups in homes.
Nearby in the town of Moosonee, some 250 residents were also evacuated over the weekend.
Emergency Management Ontario said Moosonee's mayor requested the precautionary evacuation in the community, which isn't connected to the road system. Evacuees were taken to Sudbury and Timiskaming Shores.
In southern Ontario, officials are warning of rapid snow melt and increased water levels in the north section of the Ottawa River basin.
The Ottawa River Regulating Committee says low-lying areas along the shores of the Ottawa River in Pembroke can expect minor flooding levels to be reached within the next few days.
Meanwhile, water levels remain high in communities including Bancroft, Parry Sound, Algonquin Park and Peterborough following earlier flooding that occurred in mid-April.
In the Township of Whitewater Region, approximately 100 kilometres northwest of Ottawa, a voluntary evacuation order remains in effect.
Whitewater Region Mayor Jim Labow said water levels were expected to peak over the weekend, where they would remain for about a week before receding.
“Our issue with the flooding, a big issue, is access for emergency vehicles,” Labow told CTV’s Canada AM on Monday. He said one municipal road and one private road remain under water after summer-like temperatures brought about a rush of snow-melt over the weekend.
The township has sandbags available for residents and the Red Cross has been put on standby, Labow said.
Saskatchewan state of emergency
In Saskatchewan, rising flood water is threatening one of the busiest highways in the province.
Water is nearing the bottom of the bridge on Highway 11, at the bottom of the Lumsden Valley north of Regina, and municipal officials say if the water continues to rise it will likely flow over the road.
Fish Creek, located about 90 kilometres north of Saskatoon, was added Monday to the growing list of Saskatchewan communities that have declared a state of emergency.
“We thought OK, it will get high, it might get tricky but then it will stop it will slow down and our investment from the last couple of years will hold it,” Fish Creek resident Jan Jacobs told CTV Regina on Monday.
Jacobs and his family evacuated their home Friday night and as of Monday their property remains surrounded by water.
“It’s complete gone. We have to start from scratch,” he said.
In Regina, letters were delivered to 340 homes, advising residents to be prepared to evacuate should the Wascana Creek flood. Sandbags and other water barricades were set up around the creek, which runs through the city.
More than a dozen communities were placed under a state of emergency over the weekend after warm temperatures caused widespread flooding in the southern half of the Prairie province.
With files from The Canadian Press and CTV Regina
