Parts of Grand Lake have been devastated by flood waters, after a weekend of heavy rain and high winds tore through homes and cottages in the small community near Minto, N.B.
“Just complete devastation. I believe it’s worse than last year,” said Mike Roy, a resident who built on the lake three years ago.
“We were getting three to four-foot waves coming in. A lot or erosion, a lot of banging and thrashing. I lost my heat pumps, I lost my hot tub.”
The only way to access many of the shoreline homes is by boat. The roadways resemble more of a canal through the area, especially Princess Park, an area known for its sandy beaches and pristine water.
EMO conducted wellness checks on the lake and the vast majority of the area is evacuated.
Paul and Viola DeBouver weathered the storm over the weekend, as waves crashed into their home, which took quite the beating. The waves ripped shingles off and detaching the deck.
“I mopped the floor up, three pails full, and then he felt sorry for me so he drilled those holes,” said Viola, while pointing to holes in the floor of her sun room.
“I drilled a couple holes in the floor to let the water go in the basement, which already has six feet of water in it, so that made it a little easier,” said Paul.
Nearly everything that was secured broke loose.
“Our docks, our stairs, anything that was tied up before the flood — all of that stuff all broke loose and all was gone through the woods,” added Roy.
Water levels have actually gone down over the last 72 hours by about 15 inches
“Now the hard part comes where we’re going to have to start repairing and fixing and moving and organizing and it’s going to take most of the summer probably to get everything semi-organized,” said Paul, while looking at his yard, which is still under about six feet of water.
Inspectors with the province and the Fredericton Fire Department are beginning the process of assessing the damage. Residents are being encouraged to report figures to emergency measures.
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