Towns and villages in southern Alberta and Saskatchewan were plunged into states of emergency this weekend, in the wake of days of torrential rains.
Water overflowing the banks of rivers and creeks swollen by days of heavy rain damaged homes and shut highways, after as many as 150 millimetres of rain fell in several regions of the Prairies recent days. As the rain fell onto ground already sodden by previous storms, the water was left nowhere to go but overland.
In Maple Creek, floodwaters crested Friday, overflowing the banks of the town's namesake creek and sending a deluge into many people's homes. At least 80 households were evacuated, along with patients of the town's hospital, as virtually the entire community was submerged.
Despite the evacuations, Maple Creek Mayor Barry Rudd said no one slept in his town's emergency centre.
"Because it's a small community," Rudd told CTV News Channel on Saturday, "everybody went to someone else's place to stay."
Rudd expects the cleanup to take its toll on his town, but said the economic impact would be felt most by those who use the nearby Trans-Canada Highway.
Floodwaters caused a large sinkhole to form in the westbound lane of the Trans-Canada Highway nearby Maple Creek, stopping traffic on the region's most important highway. It isn't known when the road will re-open.
"There is no access to get through to Medicine Hat or Calgary or Vancouver, because it is the Trans-Canada Highway," Rudd said, noting transport trucks must take a 200-kilometre detour north instead of using the 30-kilometre stretch that's now closed.
Other portions of the Trans-Canada Highway have been shut on both sides of the Alberta-Saskatchewan border, as well as Highway 41 south to the U.S. Motorists are advised to check road conditions with the Alberta Motor Association before setting out.
Although the worst may be over in Saskatchewan, emergency officials are still dealing with a slew of crises across southern Alberta. The flood zone there is growing, with ten communities now under a state of emergency.
Residents of Irvine, Alta., were evacuated from their homes Saturday, as flood water levels reached nearly two metres. An Emergency Operations Centre staffed by Canadian Red Cross officials and volunteers was established in nearby Medicine Hat.
Although water levels receded Saturday from their crest 24 hours earlier, an official with Alberta's Emergency Management Agency said the "little bit of respite" may be short lived.
Another low-pressure system moving into the area has forecasters predicting more heavy rain in the next few days.
While residents confront the prospect of putting the flood-ravaged pieces back together, Alberta farmers can do little to save recently seeded crops that are not only drowning, but also rotting in the colder temperatures accompanying the storm system.
