WATCH: Brandon inundated by water on Sunday.
WINNIPEG – More than two dozen Manitoba municipalities, including Brandon, have declared local states of emergency because of flooding caused by rain on the weekend.
A bridge on Gopher Creek, upstream of Virden, Man., has given way, Pipestone Reeve Ross Tycoles said at about 11 a.m. Monday, and the town is expecting a “massive surge” as a result.
Cromer, Man., in the rural municipality of Pipestone, was evacuated when roads in the area washed out, putting 20 to 30 people out of their homes. People in the nearby town of Reston used sandbags to protect their homes.
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“Cromer is still evacuated; however, the water is receding there. It has dropped about five feet overnight,” Tycoles said Monday morning, but he added they don’t feel this is the end of the struggle.
The weekend storm dumped 75 to 150 millimetres of rain on southwestern Manitoba by Sunday evening, Environment Canada said, with Deloraine, Man., receiving 151 mm of rain from Friday until 7 a.m. Monday.
The total amount of rainfall in Brandon for June has reached 240 mm, making it the second wettest month since 1890 in the western Manitoba city.
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The storm was accompanied by strong winds gusting to 80 kilometres per hour or more, with winds clocked as high as 104 km/h in Brandon on Sunday, according to preliminary information from Environment Canada.
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The Brandon Municipal Airport cancelled flights Sunday after its main access road was flooded. Brandon Mayor Shari Decter Hirst said she wasn’t sure yet Monday morning when the airport will reopen.
The wind knocked down trees across southern Manitoba and caused multiple power outages. A City of Winnipeg spokeswoman said they received almost 400 calls about fallen trees and branches.
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Highways across southwestern Manitoba were closed because of flood water on the roads, including the Trans-Canada Highway from Brandon to Highway 110, and sections of highways 2, 3, 21, 83, 110, 252, 254, 255, 256, 264, 265, 270, 302, 345, 349, 354, 366, 445, 463, 467, 468, 469, 542 and 568. The RM of Pipestone closed all roads in the municipality due to the severity of the flooding. A full list of closures can be found on the Manitoba road report.
Manitoba municipalities that have declared a state of emergency are:
- Archie
- Arthur
- Brandon
- Cameron
- Coldwell
- Cornwallis
- Daly
- Deloraine
- Edward
- Elkhorn
- Hamiota
- Hartney
- Grahamdale
- Miniota
- Oak Lake
- Pipestone
- Roblin
- Sifton
- Siglunes
- Strathclair
- Virden
- Wallace
- Westbourne
- Whitewater
- Winchester
- Woodworth
Preliminary rainfall amounts from Environment Canada from Friday to 7 a.m. Monday:
- Deloraine 151 mm
- Virden 140 mm
- Pierson 133 mm
- Braindon Municipal Airport 127 mm
- Moosehorn 122 mm
- Hargrave 115 mm
- Eriksdale 111 mm
- Boissevain 110 mm
- Reston 107 mm
- Neepawa 104 mm
- Birtle 101 mm
- Hamiota 98 mm
- Forrest 97 mm
- Dauphin 95 mm
- Souris 95 mm
- Russell 95 mm
- Melita 89 mm
- Minnedosa 79 mm
- Shoal Lake 78 mm
- Wasagaming 78 mm
- Roblin 71 mm
Wind gusts were clocked at:
- Brandon 104 km/h
- Gimli 83 km/h
- Oak Point 83 km/h
- Winnipeg 81 km/h
- Deerwood 81 km/h
- Pilot Mound 74 km/h
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