Ottawa homeowners clean up after flash flooding damages basements

Basements ruined in flash flood Sewage backups and pooled water lead to health concerns as basements are torn up after flash floods in Ottawa.

The water is starting to recede from basements flooded during last Thursday’s storm, but only now is the extent of the damage being revealed.

The nightmare is not over for Ottawa residents who are left with thousands of dollars worth of repairs, some forced to empty their basements completely.

Despite the water now drying up, the problem is the sanitary issue. Anything that the water touched that cannot be sanitized, needs to be thrown out.

Piles of personal belongings, furniture, toys, and sentimental items all destroyed in flash flooding after some areas of Ottawa saw nearly 100 mm of rain.

"Carpet, couches, furniture, and the chairs, everything is gone," said Suzanne Harrison, whose basement flooded in the storm. "Anything that was in the water was contaminated and can’t be cleaned."

Harrison’s basement has been turned upside down.

Fans are going constantly as the cleanup continues. It will likely cost thousands of dollars.

"Right now they are emptying my basement because of all of the water damage, everything has to go," she said.

Harrison is thankful insurance will cover the costs, but she is far from peace of mind during a nightmare week that now includes health concerns.

"I have my husband who is a paraplegic, we need to get the air conditioner back on because quadriplegics can’t control their body temperature, so we are just waiting for someone to check the furnace," she said.

Not far from this neighbourhood, there is also damage at Sarah Vlasblom’s home. Unfortunately, the water that flooded her basement was also contaminated with sewage.

"I had a completely flooded basement," she said.

Vlasblom was concerned with her children’s health and safety. She hired a contractor to make sure everything is sanitized.

"If items have touched the sewage water, be careful, understand that they do need to be cleaned and disinfected," said Deven Raval, owner of Puroclean. "Metal, wood, plastics, these can be cleaned and disinfected."

Raval says he has received approximately 275 calls in the three days since the flooding.

The toughest calls are owners who do not have insurance, can’t qualify, or can’t claim the full amount of damage that they are dealing with, meaning that they are out thousands of dollars.