{"id":211837,"date":"2019-04-29T00:04:54","date_gmt":"2019-04-29T04:04:54","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/?p=211837"},"modified":"2019-04-29T00:04:54","modified_gmt":"2019-04-29T04:04:54","slug":"armed-forces-in-bracebridge-ont-to-help-battle-rising-floodwaters","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/2019\/04\/29\/armed-forces-in-bracebridge-ont-to-help-battle-rising-floodwaters\/","title":{"rendered":"Armed forces in Bracebridge, Ont., to help battle rising floodwaters"},"content":{"rendered":"
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FILE: The iconic red maple tree in Port Sydney is submerged as the annual spring runoff leads to flooding in Muskoka. (Photo<\/a>: @TonyclementCPC\/Twitter<\/a>)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

BRACEBRIDGE, Ont. \u2014 The ongoing flooding plaguing Ontario’s cottage country prompted another town to declare a state of emergency on Sunday as members of the Canadian Armed Forces descended on a nearby community to help with sandbagging before more rain arrives.<\/p>\n

Muskoka Lakes declared a state of emergency on Sunday after water levels in its namesake lake rose by 12 centimetres over the past 24 hours, said its mayor Phil Harding.<\/p>\n

\u201cAll estimates are suggesting that the water is going to continue to rise… Our primary concern in doing this is the safety of our residents,\u201d he said during a press conference.<\/p>\n

Muskoka Lakes is the latest community north of Toronto to take this step, after Huntsville, Minden Hills and Bracebridge all declared emergencies in the past week due to the fast-rising floodwaters.<\/p>\n

Bracebridge called the Canadian Armed Forces for more help in the battle against the flood as the forecast signals there is more rain on the way.<\/p>\n

Mayor Graydon Smith said that while there are dry conditions for a couple of days, the 25 millimetres of rain forecast for Wednesday means that the already-high water levels will take longer to recede.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhile we’re expecting things to come down in portions of the watershed over the next few days … Wednesday could throw a bit of wrench into it,\u201d Smith told reporters Sunday morning.<\/p>\n

Lt.-Col. Graham Walsh told the same press conference that a group of reservists based in the Toronto area will deploy a total 60 soldiers to help with emergency efforts in Bracebridge.<\/p>\n

Thirty soldiers were already on site with the remainder to follow, he added, and their immediate plan was to help with sandbagging.<\/p>\n

Smith has said his town is dealing with a flood of \u201chistorical\u201d proportions, with both higher water levels and more homes and residents affected than during the devastating floods of 2013.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf you go down and look at the Bracebridge Falls area, we’ve got a dam where the water is going straight over the top of it, and infrastructure that we built after 2013 … that’s completely submerged.\u201d<\/p>\n

He told reporters on Sunday that roughly 27,000 sandbags have already been distributed in the community, and he expected the flood conditions to linger for \u201cseveral more days.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWe’re monitoring future weather closely, and hopeful that precipitation is minimal over the next week and that the system has a chance to flush itself out,\u201d Smith said.<\/p>\n

He said the rushing water is moving incredibly fast, and urged people not to drive on closed roadways, while noting that people have been seen on Jet Skis and in a boat near the mouth of the river.<\/p>\n

In addition to the danger due to what Smith called a \u201cmassive amount of debris\u201d in the surging waters, those \u201ctouring around\u201d were hampering sandbagging efforts, he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere were people down there actively trying to sandbag their properties and then they had to deal with the wake off these watercrafts… That’s unacceptable,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

In nearby Minden Hills, Mayor Brent Devolin said the water levels remain high but sub-zero temperatures overnight helped to stabilize the flooding.<\/p>\n

Like Bracebridge, the forecast calls for more rain by Wednesday or Thursday, but Devolin said he is not expecting to require help from the Forces.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe’ll continue to watch and monitor, and obviously those people in those flooded areas should continue to be diligent … but I feel better than I did a couple of days ago,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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