NB residents cleaning up after heavy rainfall

ST STEPHEN, N.B. – Heavy rainfall in parts of New Brunswick, Friday, has left residents cleaning up from flooding.

The McShane family moved into a quiet two-story house in St. Stephen fifteen years ago. They bought the land because of a quiet brook that runs through the backyard, eventually meeting up with the St. Croix River, just meters away.

But last night, the little stream took out the McShane’s entire driveway and bits of their deck.

“I went to get my daughter at work and pulled in the driveway, and the water was within us. Pulling in the driveway the water was coming down. I said, ‘We’re done.’ We knew then we were done,” said homeowner Jane McShane.

It only took an hour for driving rain and flash floods to wash out the Mcshane driveway. The St. Stephen area was hit by more than 165 millimetres of rain on Friday, and many homes in the area are dealing with the aftermath.

This isn’t the first time the McShanes have had to deal with damage from flooding. They have had to replace their driveway four times because of the water that runs underneath it, with the last time during the major flood of 2010.

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“I’m okay. I’m sad. I’m sad because we put a lot of work into … bringing it back up to a place that we could enjoy and now we’re starting over again. It’s a little disheartening,” said McShane.

The McShane’s are not the only ones left reeling from the flood. Dennis Hong owns the Winsome Inn in St. Stephen. He had to evacuate all of his guests last night and he spent more than six hours pumping water from underneath his motel rooms.

Now, Hong is without power, right in the heart of tourist season.

“If we shut down this building, (we will) lose money, a lot actually.”

St. Stephen’s mayor John Quartermain says the city is working closely with RCMP and the province to clean everything up as fast as possible. So far, the city has pumped water out of more than forty basements and businesses. While the damage is extensive, Quartermain says he’s still relieved.

“I wouldn’t say I’m happy about it, but you know, it could have been a lot worse. With the volume of water that was going out there … when you see the water cross the road and it’s three or four feet deep, you know, you think ‘this is going to be an event.’”