Floodwaters Will Continue Slow Decline This Week

Flooding along Meenan's Cove Beach in Quispamsis on April 29, 2019. (Submitted/Government of New Brunswick)

New Brunswick EMO wants people to remain patient as the province continues to recover from flooding.

Director Greg MacCallum said Tuesday a slow but steady decline in water levels is expected to continue over the coming days.

“The most recent reports indicate that most regions along the river system now should be out of flood stage by the end of this week,” said MacCallum. “That’s out of the flood stage as opposed to back to what would be normally be expected.”

Fredericton and Maugerville are expected to drop below flood stage by Friday, Oak Point by Saturday, and the Saint John area by Sunday. Jemseg, Sheffield, Lakeville Corner and Grand Lake will remain above flood stage until at least early next week.

The River Watch five-day forecast for the lower St. John River is available at https://t.co/fZk4PzGP4T
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The River Watch five-day forecast for the upper St. John River is available at https://t.co/ULG3xdO3jl pic.twitter.com/aI6Bj1LbIA

— NBEMO / OMUNB (@NBEMO_OMUNB) April 30, 2019

MacCallum said this year’s flood happened more slowly than last year’s, giving them more to prepare for the impacts.

“Last year, there was a considerable amount of really rapid flooding — one could almost describe it as flash flooding — in the first 24 hours,” he said.

Ahmed Dassouki with the Department of Transportation and Infrastructure said 32 roads have reopened as of Tuesday afternoon but around 80 remain closed.

He said many more roads should open in the coming days as water levels keep falling.

Forecasters are calling for cool and dry conditions this week with a bit of rain possible Friday night into Saturday.

Flood Cleanup Safety Tips

New Brunswick’s chief medical officer of health has some safety tips as people begin to clean up from this year’s flooding.

Dr. Jennifer Russell said you should avoid floodwaters, if possible, as they may contain sewage and industrial waste.

Russell said you should wash your hands thoroughly with soap and water after clean up activities or handling contaminated items.

She said you should keep children away from floodwater areas until they have been cleaned up or for about a week after the water has cleared completely. This will allow time for sunlight and soil to help destroy harmful bacteria.

Russell said people should not use their well water until floodwaters have receded from the well.

“Ensure that well water is boiled for one minute prior to consumption until water test results are returned,” she said, adding information on well testing kits will be released soon.

Russell said well water should not be used at all if it has a persistent odour or discolouration, or if there are signs of chemical contamination.

More Evacuees Register With Red Cross

More flood evacuees are registering with the Canadian Red Cross even as floodwaters continue to fall.

Provincial director Bill Lawlor said over 1,200 people from 486 households had registered as of Tuesday morning.

“We are seeing a slight decrease in emergency accommodations — those who are in hotels and motels,” Lawlor said. “We have 155 households and 433 individuals.”

Lawlor said those who have not registered can contact the Red Cross at 1-800-863-6582 between 8 a.m. and 9 p.m.

Red Cross has FREE FLOOD CLEANUP KITS for #nbflood REGISTERED households (limit of 1/household):#Fredericton: Centre Sainte-Anne, 715 Priestman St.#SaintJohn: Loch Lomond Place, 120 McDonald St.#Maugerville Community Centre, 439 Rte. 105 #NewBrunswick pic.twitter.com/zT8q3B3oca

— CanRedCrossNB (@canredcrossnb) April 29, 2019