Flooding continues to cause delays and detours across province

FREDERICTON – Flooding is still occuring in some communities across New Brunswick, causing delays and detours for residents.

As of Thursday morning, water around Sheffield, Jemseg and Lakeville were all above flood level. Other communities, like Grand Lake and Maugerville, were very close to flood level. Water levels in these communities are expected to peak Friday and into the weekend.

Up to 30 mm of rain was expected to fall Thursday, which had New Brunswick’s River Watch program on alert. RCMP and the Oromocto Fire Department closed Highway 105, outside Maugerville, as water started pouring onto the road.

“There’s a lot of debris and stuff on the highway right now. We’ve got water coming up on the road and we’re having to expand our roadblocks,” Oromocto Fire Chief Jody Price said.

Price said the rain has made the ground soft and dangerous to drive on.

“Every year, Maugerville has this flooding issue. The people there are aware of that. They’re quite ready for it. And basically our job is sort of to help the community, help accommodate them as much as we can to get them through these next few weeks,” he said.

Officials continue to monitor water levels and say they’ll be keeping highways closed until they’re clear.