EDMONTON- City officials are urging Edmontonians to stay away from the North Saskatchewan River.
“People (say) ‘oh isn’t that cute, let’s go down and put our foot in’ and you get caught. It’s really important to stay away,” Mayor Stephen Mandel said Sunday afternoon. “Don’t go near the river.”
Alberta Environment has confirmed that the North Saskatchewan River has crested and peaked. But getting anywhere near the river is still very dangerous.
“City of Edmonton officials have been working around the clock to monitor the situation and ensure the safety of the citizens of Edmonton,” said Mandel.
Water hasn’t spilled over the banks of the river. Water did, however, flood some lookout points on the river Sunday morning.
The river is moving quickly and contains a lot of debris, which may be a danger to the public.
Vassy Kapelos reports from the North Saskatchewan River Sunday morning:
“We are vigilant in our monitoring of river levels and are ready to activate differing procedures in our response plan depending on the level of the river,” said Chris Ward, branch manager of Drainage Services with the City of Edmonton.
About 1,000 sandbags were delivered to the Riverdale neighbourhood Saturday. Sandbags were also placed around the Alf Savage Centre in Whitemud Creek.
“Those have been in use as a precautionary measure,” Ward said Sunday afternoon.
A section of 102 Avenue at 88 Street was closed Saturday evening. It is scheduled to re-open on Monday morning.
Residents are urged to stay off the North Saskatchewan River all together. Boat launches in the city are submerged and have been closed.
The city says many river valley trails are closed. Officials say a low lying trail in McKinnon is under water. People are being asked to obey signs in the area and avoid closed trails.
For more information on trail closures, visit the City of Edmonton’s website.
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