Montrealers in flood-prone areas are living tense moments. Rain is in the forecast for this weekend, and in Île-Bizard, sand bags are being handed out to dozens of home owners.
Though flooding isn’t expected to be as bad as it was in 2017 and 2019, many don’t feel like they’re out of the woods yet.
“We have people that are in a little bit of distress,” said Pier-Luc Cauchon, a resident of the Île Mercier neighbourhood of the Île-Bizard-Ste-Geneviève borough.
Cauchon methodically checks online data about water levels daily, relaying the latest projections to other residents on social media.
“The data is there and it’s getting better and better,” he told Global News. “We know what’s coming.”
He’s become a trusted source. When Île Mercier was ravaged by floods in 2019, many turned to him. He helped coordinate volunteers to help citizens in need.
“We established an order to help each other one by one. We made a team, we got together and it was very good during these floods,” he recalled.
READ MORE: Spring flooding hits part of Quebec as authorities keep eye on rivers, lakes
Cauchon doesn’t think this year will be nearly as bad as 2017 or 2019. He says his level of concern is at 4 out of 10.
Still, with water seeping further onto Île Mercier than it has in the last few years, residents are conjuring traumatic memories. The only bridge to Mercier was under in 2017 and 2019, and the small island was only accessible by boat.
Some homes were hit with tens of thousands of dollars in damage.
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“We had boats coming in the back yard,” Île Mercier resident Burt Ansell remembers.
The floods of 2017 and 2019 were nightmares for he and his wife Helene. Their backyard and basement filled with water, causing major damage.
Though things aren’t looking nearly as bad this year, they’re worried.
“I’m just concerned that mother nature might just, you know, upset the apple cart right now,” said Burt.
READ MORE: Frustration growing on flooded Île Mercier, where residents have been cut off for nearly a month
Île-Bizard has distributed sandbags to dozens of at risk homes, and residents including the Ansells are already building barriers.
“We’re ready to face what’s coming,” said Île-Bizard-Ste-Geneviève mayor Stéphane Côté. “We’re acting in a prevention.”
For some in the area, seeing the sandbags being distributed brought anxiety.
“It triggered a lot of trauma in some neighbours,” said Cauchon. “We had some panic attacks.”
Division Chief Martin Guilbault of the Montreal Fire Department is recommending people take precaution at their homes.
He said the effects of the rain forecast for this weekend may only be seen Monday or Tuesday.
“The weekend is going to be very quiet. We don’t expect the water to go anywhere,” Guilbault told Global News in an interview. “People are still taking care of preparing themselves. We have about around 20 dikes in the area of Montreal and every one is set up.”
The rain forecast in the coming days is far less than what fell in 2019.
Patrick de Bellefeuille of The Weather Network says fluctuating temperatures should slow the trickle down effect of snow melting in the Laurentians.
“There’s probably going to be some melting, yes, plus the rain for Sunday. But then next week it becomes colder again,” he explained.
Côté and Guilbault are encouraging people to put sand bags down just in case, saying the nice weather on Saturday presents the perfect opportunity.
“I don’t want them to panic because there’s nothing to panic yet,” said Côté.
Cauchon says the Île-Bizard-Ste-Genevieve borough’s response has been much better compared to past years under an old administration.
“It’s a day and night from 2017,” he told Global News. “It was always reactive response we had, and it was always too late.”
Cauchon, municipal authorities and everyone living in flood-prone areas will be watching the water closely in the next week.
How quickly the snow melts up north will be a key factor in determining how high water levels get here, and residents will be on edge for several days until truly believing they’re in the clear.
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