Residents affected by Friday’s flood were still assessing the damage Wednesday. Some are already considering suing their municipalities for losses, although such actions are generally unlikely to succeed.
“It’s usually a nice neighborhood,” sighs Fadwa Aziz, pointing to her childhood home on rue Fred-Barry in the Domaine Renaud in Laval, where her parents still live.
INFOGRAPHIC THE PRESS
The family home was flooded Friday, like many others in the neighborhood. Furniture debris that was in the basement just days ago is now scattered across the lawn. It smells like sewage, attracting swarms of flies.
PHOTO HUGO-SÉBASTIEN AUBERT, THE PRESS
A citizens’ group is convinced that the major works underway in the street have had an impact on the sewer backup.
A citizens’ group, of which Fadwa Aziz is a member, is convinced that the major works underway in the street have had an impact on the sewer backup. “Several streets in the neighborhood were affected. But those who were closer to the works had more water. The street had become a swimming pool, we had never seen that,” says Mme Aziz. Since June, work has been underway to repair the sewers, water supply pipes, roadway and sidewalks on Fred-Barry Street, in the heart of the neighborhood.
Laplante Avenue, a little further on, was redone last year.
PHOTO HUGO-SÉBASTIEN AUBERT, THE PRESS
Fadwa Aziz in front of her childhood home, still inhabited by her parents, in the Renaud estate
Why is there so much backflow if it was just redone? There are still water problems in this neighborhood.
Fadwa Aziz, member of a Laval citizens’ group
The group of citizens, who live on different streets in the neighborhood, are examining the possibility of a class action against the City of Laval. “It’s still very embryonic. We contacted a lawyer [mardi] “, says Valérie St-Pierre, who lives a few streets away in the Renaud estate. A tall order: few individuals manage to demonstrate the negligence of a city.
PHOTO HUGO-SÉBASTIEN AUBERT, THE PRESS
The house of Dominic Gratton and Valérie St-Pierre, in the Renaud estate, was flooded.
Valérie St-Pierre also created the Facebook group “Sinistrés du domaine Renaud — Laval” to reach out to affected residents of the neighbourhood. Nearly thirty residents are already part of it. “What we want is action, gestures. We want to make sure this doesn’t happen again,” she says.
Several neighbors attended the city council meeting on Tuesday. “But not much came out of it,” said M.me Aziz: The residents are asking for an independent expert to come and assess their situation.
Seeking compensation
One thing is certain: Fadwa Aziz’s parents’ insurance will not cover all the damage caused by the torrential rains. “It won’t even cover material goods,” she laments.
By Friday morning, the water had reached 10 inches in the basement of the house. “At that point, we were able to contact the insurance company. They sent out a disaster recovery company that cleaned, decontaminated and installed dehumidifiers and air purifiers,” she said.
PHOTO HUGO-SÉBASTIEN AUBERT, THE PRESS
Many material assets were damaged by the torrential rains.
But at 5 p.m., when the rain picked up, the sewers burst. Water came rushing back through the basement shower and toilet, this time up to a metre high. “The disaster recovery company’s machines were floating,” says M.me Aziz.
His family, like many other disaster victims, is not eligible for the Quebec government’s General Disaster Financial Assistance Program, which aims to provide last-resort assistance to owners and tenants.
For a tenant or owner to be eligible, water from an overflowing stream must reach the property of the residence. If water enters the residence through sewer backup or infiltration following a flood, as happened Friday, the loss is not covered.
“We need financial help,” says M.me Aziz: Since her family insurance is insufficient and she is not eligible for the emergency assistance program, she is now counting on the City to obtain compensation.
Thousands of calls to 911
The record rainfall that fell in Quebec caused major problems with backflow and infiltration and caused power outages that affected nearly 25% of households in the Laval area, or more than 56,000 people, indicated the head of public affairs for the City of Laval, Philippe Déry.
Since the water backup and infiltration situations have been reported to insurers, emergency services or the municipality, the City of Laval cannot yet provide an estimate of the number of people affected at this time.
“For information purposes, nearly 5,800 calls were made to 911 between Friday at 7 a.m. and Sunday, August 11, late in the evening, and more than 2,000 citizen requests were recorded,” explains Mr. Déry.
At this time, no lawsuits or class actions have been served on them. “We will not comment further on specific cases,” he added.
An “absolutely exceptional” event
“What happened on Friday is absolutely exceptional. If people do things [actions collectives]I wish them good luck. Because there are not many networks that could accommodate these water levels,” explains Alain Mailhot, professor of urban hydrology at the National Institute of Scientific Research.
He points out, however, that the situation is different if the affected sector has recurring problems. “If they have had frequent backflows linked to less extreme rains, then there may be grounds for appeal,” the professor says.
The government can’t design a network that can handle every conceivable rain, he says. “So it’s not surprising that it’s caused so many problems.”