Rivière-Éternité – Two missing people are keeping local and provincial authorities in suspense in the small municipality of Rivière-Éternité in Bas-Saguenay. A state of emergency was declared by the mayor and reception centers were set up in neighboring towns.
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The 125 millimeters of rain that fell in less than an hour in the area wiped out several segments of local roads and part of Highway 170. The occupants of two vehicles, which had got out to remove debris that blocked the access road to Parc national du Fjord-du-Saguenay were swept away when the Éternité river burst its banks on Saturday afternoon.
“Nearly thirty police officers were deployed, the helicopter, the teams of divers and many quads as well, argues the spokesperson for the Sûreté du Québec (SQ), Hugues Beaulieu. […] The search for the missing man and woman is still ongoing. »
According to what the SQ was able to see, the two missing were transported at full speed by the stream which flows into the Saguenay River. The scope of research is therefore quite large to cover.
Evacuation measures
Nearly 100 campers in the national park have to evacuate, as they are stuck on the other side of where the road gave way under the pressure of runoff. 93 others were able to be evacuated by sea on Saturday evening.
Although they are safe, the dozens of isolated boaters are transported by helicopter to Rivière-Éternité before being relocated to the Center Jean-Claude Tremblay and the Auberge des Battures, both located in La Baie.
Closed until further notice
Teams from the Ministère des Transports et de la Mobilité durable du Québec (MTQ) are on the ground to assess the condition of Route 170. No timetable has been announced for the reopening of the access road between Saint-Siméon and Saguenay. Minister Geneviève Guilbault spoke of “several days” on her social networks.
“The teams are working very quickly to secure citizens. […] It is important to check if the ground is strong enough to rebuild in the same place. We must also assess whether there may be other subsidence,” explained the Minister of Municipal Affairs, Andrée Laforest, during a press scrum.
Testimony of Dany Boudreault
With the collaboration of Louis Deschênes.