With the floods over, it is now the generosity of all of Charlevoix that is spilling over to the devastated community of Baie-Saint-Paul. Spontaneous solidarity is set in motion to support the victims when several towns in the region, and even beyond, lower their flags to pay tribute to the two firefighters who died on duty.
Since Monday, Le Festif! of Baie-Saint-Paul is no longer in the mood for celebration, but rather for solidarity. The organizers of the Admiral Festival in Baie-Saint-Paul, accustomed to managing emergencies, quickly set up a crisis unit to help the victims. In all, the City has, on Thursday, 1,065 homes and 134 businesses affected by Monday’s floods. Of this number, 493 places remain evacuated, including 67 businesses.
“There were a lot of people who spontaneously wanted to help, but who didn’t know how to use their time and energy, explains Clément Turgeon, founder of the Festif! We saw an opportunity to harness that momentum: that’s what we always do at the festival, manage the emergency. »
Wednesday, the Festive gang! opened a Facebook page called “Cleaning Corvee – BSP Floods”. At the time her lines were written, she already had more than 1700 members.
Every day, the page displays the needs: “From 4 p.m. to 8 p.m., we are looking for 50 volunteers for this second shift. “People then indicate their availability in comments and the” quarters fill up very quickly “, underlines Clément Turgeon.
“There are already 350 volunteers who have pitched in to clean up the land and the houses, he counted on Thursday morning. It’s going to take a long time to recover, but at least we’re here to do the chores that the victims might not want to do, like throwing their furniture and souvenirs out on the street. »
An intimate drama, mutual aid appreciated
Since Monday, many artists have written to Clément Turgeon to express their support for the Festif! and in Baie-Saint-Paul.
Messages of thanks are also pouring in to the festival team, which is coordinating, together with the City, the huge clean-up project awaiting the village. The water often rises when reading this gratitude, no longer in the streets of the city but in the eyes of those who have not hesitated to stand at the bedside of their community.
“We received words that made us cry,” says Clément Turgeon. Someone, for example, who tells us that his energy really changed for the better when he saw 10 young people show up to help him. It can make a big difference, seeing strangers helping you out in the middle of your drama. »
The founder of the Festive! himself lost part of his childhood in the disaster. “My father’s house is in one of the very affected areas, that of rue Saint-Joseph. This is where I grew up: it’s not easy, he explains. The mutual aid that he and his team oversee, however, takes heart away from grief — for now.
“It may be a way of not cracking up right away. We will undoubtedly have a surge of emotions in the coming days, when the dust has settled and we will see the extent of the damage. »
Flags at half mast and a minute of silence
There are also several restaurants and cafes in Baie-Saint-Paul that offer free meals to disaster victims. Tuesday, The duty was able to see on the spot the magnitude of the task to be accomplished — but also to observe a tight-knit community, ready to help others and watch over the most vulnerable. Benoît Liart, for example, himself heavily affected by the flood, intended to help his 82-year-old neighbor as soon as possible, between two shovels of mud accumulated on his land.
The messages of support resonate from one end of Charlevoix to the other, and even beyond. Following the example of Baie-Saint-Paul, many municipalities lower their flags to honor Régis and Christopher Lavoie, the two volunteer firefighters who gave their lives to help others.
Clermont, Saint-Hilarion, Saint-Siméon, in Charlevoix, are some of the municipalities that lowered their flag in memory of the two missing. From Prévost, in the Laurentians, to Magog, in Estrie, the lowering of the flags also underlined the dedication of the two men. Several barracks across Quebec also lowered their banners to honor their sacrifice.
In Quebec, the Prime Minister’s Office has no intention of asking the President of the National Assembly to lower the flags flying above Parliament at half-mast. In the federal capital, parliamentarians observed a minute of silence at the end of question period, at the request of the Bloc Québécois.