‘I can’t keep losing everything’: Pierrefonds residents demand flooding solution

Whenever heavy rain is in the forecast, families on Fleming Street say they brace for the worst.

For Melissa St. Germain, flooding isn’t a one-time disaster. It’s become a regular part of her life.

She lived in this home as a little girl, since the 1970s. She eventually bought it from her parents and now lives here with her own family.

She’s seen the property flood nearly a dozen times over the past few decades.

“It’s my son’s 18th birthday. We have plans tonight, but we’re probably going to cancel if we’re expecting the weather we’re supposed to,” said St. Germain. ” I have to stay home and protect my house –I have to protect everything. It’s not right.”

Just a few houses down, Miruna Mazilu says years of flooding have turned her and a team of neighbours into quasi-investigators.

She has spent years documenting and recently digging up city documents and engineering reports that she believes clearly point to a long-standing problem.

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Right outside her home sits a temporary pump that residents say can prevent flooding — when connected.

“We had a few times where it wasn’t installed properly, or it was not monitored by the city properly, which was very frustrating — to have the pump in front of you and get flooded,” said Mazilu.

Some residents say since they can’t rely on the city pump, they’ve been forced to install their own sump pumps, generators, and other costly upgrades to protect their homes.

Many have now joined a proposed class action lawsuit.

And while legal proceedings could take years to yield results, they’re looking for immediate answers.

“You call the city and say, ‘Can you please have someone bring a pump,’ and either the response is, ‘You’re not a priority,’ ‘I don’t have that as an order,’ or, now that there is a class action lawsuit, ‘Too bad for you, I’m not getting involved,'” said Galia Desautels.

The borough declined an on-camera interview, citing the ongoing litigation as one reason.

A spokesperson, however, said crews would reconnect the temporary pump ahead of Tuesday’s forecast rainfall.

But after decades of repeated flooding, residents say they’re no longer looking for temporary fixes..

“We need a permanent solution — we can’t beg every time rain is expected for you to put a pump on the street. That’s not a solution, that’s a band-aid,” said St. Germain.

“I can’t keep losing everything. I just can’t.”