The Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Public Security, Geneviève Guilbault, wanted to reassure the victims of the Îles-de-la-Madeleine this Sunday during her visit to the archipelago.
Posted at 11:27
Updated at 4:20 p.m.
“I expect the regular compensation program to meet the needs, but we are not closed to anything,” she explained.
Ms. Guilbault visited the tourist sector of La Grave in Havre-Aubert hard hit by the passage of the post-tropical storm Fiona as owners of flooded businesses assessed the damage.
“Are you going to have to do it all over again? “Asked the Deputy Prime Minister to the owner of the Belle et Nathan jewelry store, Luc Chevrier. ” No choice. My cupboards and display cases are finished. Just window displays, I have more than $50,000,” replied the man, visibly discouraged by the extent of the damage caused by the water.
Mr. Chevrier had boarded up his shop the day before the storm fearing that rocks from the new beach replenishment – a 7.4 million project funded by Quebec to limit erosion – would break its windows. The Press had met him a few hours before the storm.
PHOTO OLIVIER JEAN, THE PRESS
Geneviève Guilbault chats with Luc Chevrier, owner of the Belle et Nathan jewelry store.
It is rather the sea that has wreaked havoc.
The businessman clarified to the politician that he was “not insurable” since he is located in a flood zone. Ms. Guilbault encouraged him to submit a claim for compensation to his department as soon as possible. “It can go very quickly,” she assured.
Accompanied by a team from the Ministry of Public Security, the acting mayor and an engineer, the Deputy Prime Minister concluded that the $7.4 million structure had “done the job”. “It’s a success,” she said, adding that her government had invested 16 million in climate adaptation work over the past four years.
PHOTO OLIVIER JEAN, THE PRESS
Geneviève Guilbault and engineer Jean Hubert
“The slope of the beach has been softened by the storm. That’s exactly what we intended it to do. We marry nature rather than fight against it, ”explained Jean Hubert, the municipality’s director of engineering and buildings to the Deputy Prime Minister at the scene.
Asked about the fact that the businesses were still flooded, Ms. Guilbault replied that “it could have been worse” without this “modern solution” to limit the erosion of the banks and coastal submersion.
The Deputy Prime Minister also went to Cap-aux-Meules where other riprap work was underway, again to fight against erosion accelerated by climate change. Fiona damaged the premises. The coastal path in particular will be “to be redone” next year, the municipal engineer explained to him.
In 2020, the mayor, Jonathan Lapierre (now a candidate in the provincial elections for the Coalition avenir Québec), and the PQ member, Joël Arseneau, asked Quebec to provide an envelope of 80 million dedicated to the protection of the banks for the next 10 years.
“When we talk about shoreline erosion and coastal flooding, here we see it for real. You have to come on site to understand how much they experience it here, ”stressed to The Press the Deputy Premier, stating that she responded to four of the municipality’s six priority requests concerning this environmental issue.
Ms. Guilbault also pointed out that Fiona had no fatalities or injuries. ” It could have been worse […] I am very impressed by the capacity and the level of preparation of the Îles-de-la-Madeleine”, she indicated, thanking the teams “hard at work” for a few days on the territory to “cross the storm “.
At the beginning of the week, we will open a disaster assistance office on site, for people who have damage to their private property to, as we are used to doing in the event of a disaster, inform them about our programs. financial assistance, open the files and provide this support directly on the spot.
Deputy Prime Minister Geneviève Guilbault
Principal residences will be eligible for financial compensation, as will certain businesses. However, secondary residences such as cottages may not be covered. “You really have to see it on a case-by-case basis,” she said.
The authorities carried out 37 evacuations in the Îles-de-la-Madeleine. These victims have been redirected to hotels, but the emergency accommodation centers remain open.
Outgoing Prime Minister François Legault will also travel to the Magdalen Islands on Monday, a trip that was already planned as part of the election campaign.