Decision postponed again on dike break in Manitoba; now planned Saturday

<p>WINNIPEG – The Manitoba government has once again pushed back its plan to purposefully flood rural properties across a wide swath of the province southeast of Portage La Prairie.</p> <p>Barring any sudden emergencies, crews will wait to break a dike along the swollen Assiniboine River until Saturday morning, Water Stewardship Minister Steve Ashton said.</p> <p>Ashton also tried to soothe the worries of homeowners in the area, saying the intentional flooding will be controlled and very gradual.</p> <p>”It will be moving fairly slowly. There are areas … that will not see any water for days,” Ashton told reporters Thursday.</p> <p>The province has been raising the spectre of the intentional flood since Sunday. The move is considered the lesser of two evils, as doing nothing could cause the Assiniboine to spill its banks in other areas as well, swamping twice as much land and affecting hundreds more homes and properties.</p> <p>Excavators were already starting to dig out the dike Thursday as nearby residents scrambled to pile sandbags around their homes.</p> <p>The intentional flood was pushed back for two reasons, Ashton said – to give residents more time to prepare and because crews have built up dikes and the Portage diversion channel enough in recent days to handle 36 per cent more water.</p> <p>Manitoba floods virtually every year, but it is usually the Red River that flows through Winnipeg that causes problems. This year, the Assiniboine to the west is at levels not seen in 300 years.</p> <p>Officials say they plan to start releasing water from the dike at a rate of 500 cubic feet per second – about enough water to fill an Olympic-sized swimming pool every three minutes. Every day, the rate will be increased to a maximum of 3,000 cubic feet per second.</p> <p>The water will not come in a torrent. It is expected to spread out over a wide, flat area, filling in low-lying sections between roadways – somewhat akin to maple syrup covering a waffle.</p> <p>”It will pond up behind the first north-south road and then slowly spill over to the second one,” said Steve Topping, executive director of the Water Stewardship. “And actually, as it progresses downstream, it will slow down.”</p> <p>Homes that are above road grade may not suffer any flooding, officials said. Those that are below the roadway have been advised to build up sandbag barriers to a level 60 centimetres above the road level.</p> <p>Lucy Kinnear was packing up last-minute belongings near the dike cut Thursday as reservists were shoring up inflatable barriers around her home.</p> <p>The family just moved into their custom-built house two months ago.</p> <p>”This piece of land is supposed to be high and dry,” said the mother of two-year-old twins as she snapped photos of soldiers. “We’re not supposed to get any flooding at all.”</p> <p>Kinnear said she hadn’t had time to cry or feel bitter since she found out several days ago that her home is in the area of a deliberate flood spill.</p> <p>She said she’s been running on adrenaline and hoping her newly built home can be saved.</p> <p>”All we can do is get things out of the basement, make arrangements for our boys, our pets and ourselves – in that order – and hope for the best.</p> <p>”There is not much time to think or feel. You just have to get it done. We haven’t had much sleep in the last couple of days. But we’re not tired. We’re just … running on panic mode.”</p> <p>Another 50 homes on both sides of the Portage Diversion were issued precautionary voluntary evacuation notices Thursday. About 150 families had already been told earlier in the week to leave.</p> <p>The city of Brandon also announced the mandatory precautionary evacuation of a shopping and business centre in a low-lying area. The city said the latest forecast indicated water levels were rising due to recent rain. </p> <p>About 1,300 residents were already out of their homes in that city and another 1,000 were on standby to leave. Huge sandbag barriers were the only thing keeping the Assiniboine from surging through.</p> <p>The area targeted for the man-made breach, the Hoop and Holler Bend, was a beehive of activity. Choppers flew overhead carrying sandbags, while trucks hauling rocks and more sandbags drove up and down back roads. Military reservists were stuffing sandbags and building up dikes around the river and threatened homes.</p> <p>Henry Dyck has lived by the Hoop and Holler Bend for 17 years and said he has never seen flood water like this. His property is separated from the oxbow by the road which doubles as the dike. He had pumps working around the clock to try to keep his house safe.</p> <p>”I can’t imagine water going over this highway,” he said. “Anyone who’s in any type of disaster, at one point you kind of surrender. To get angry or upset always makes it worse.”</p> <p>Back in Kinnear’s front yard, Cpl. Mitch Wilson was one of about two dozen reservists working to protect the home. The 19-year-old from Winnipeg had been shovelling heavy sand for several days and was running on five hours sleep, but still had a smile on his face.</p> <p>”It’s tiring but we make it fun,” he said. “I think people really appreciate the help. It feels good to be out here and help people out. I feel proud to be a part of it. It feels good to know I’m helping out Canadians.”</p>