Sandbaggers needed as water levels on Ottawa River rise, councillor says

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State of emergency in Fort Coulonge, Que.

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Water levels on the Ottawa River rose Tuesday, according to the Ottawa River Regulation Planning Board.

As of Tuesday morning, the level on the river was up 5 centimetres compared to Monday at Lake Deschenes at Britannia and up 11 cm at the Hull Marina.

The board is forecasting levels to stabilize in the Britannia area this week. The levels in Hull are expected to stabilize on Wednesday. Peak level estimates on Monday were close to 2023 peak levels, according to the river conditions forecast issued Monday afternoon.

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In rural west Ottawa, the local councillor says several residents have been affected.

“This morning, I’ve done a quick drive through Constance Bay… and I have seen people already out sandbagging,” West Carleton-March Coun. Clarke Kelly told CTV Your Morning Ottawa on Tuesday.

“The Enbridge crew was out yesterday. It’s my understanding that a few people have had their gas shut off. Multiple people are reporting that their wells and septic systems are now compromised. So, definitely over the last couple of days, we’ve seen an increase in the level of needs and the impact on the community.”

Kelly said many people volunteered to fill sandbags over the weekend, but now that it’s into the work week, that number has dropped.

“Weekdays are tougher for volunteers to get out. So, we do have a shortage of people right now filling sandbags, and that is the biggest need, getting bags filled and transported off to strategic locations so people can use them at their home,” he said.

The City of Ottawa is helping to fill sandbags, but Kelly said the community is what will help people through this year’s flooding.

“It is really a community and a volunteer effort that’s going to be getting people through this. And we are seeing that. We are seeing people come out and support each other, which is always nice to see during a difficult time.”

Fort Coulonge

Some reprieve has been felt in Fort Coulonge, Que., the mayor said on Tuesday.

“This morning, actually, we’re pretty happy that the Ottawa River seems to have stabilized for the last four hours, and the Coulonge River actually have been down through the night like about two and a half centimetres,” Mayor Pierre Cyr told CTV Your Morning Ottawa.

The municipality in western Quebec declared a state of emergency due to the expected impact.

“Right now, today, this is like 30 centimetres above the record high of 2019, so that’s why we were really worried, because the water raised about seven foot over the last week here,” Cyr said. “The road basically along just on the edge of the river is high enough, it protects the village. But it won’t be good for an eight-foot raising of a level of the water. That would have brought all the water from the rivers inside the village where there’s some lower areas and would have caused a lot of damage, and the sewage system would have been just not working anymore because of the amount of water coming into it.”

Cyr said officials will be watching water levels closely to see if levels truly stabilize before lifting the state of emergency.

Pembroke

Levels were down slightly in Pembroke and at the Cheneaux Generating Station, the Ottawa River Regulation Planning Board says.

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In Pembroke, levels were down 8 cm to 112.95m, while levels dropped 3 cm at Cheneaux.

At Chats Lake at Arnprior, water levels rose 4 cm.

The board expects levels downstream of Pembroke to peak Tuesday or Wednesday, however, there is a risk of further increases in levels over the coming weeks from Mattawa to Lake Coulonge because of the high snowpack remaining in the north.