Torrential rains in Lanaudière | “Had we known, we would have taken a kayak”

After the torrential rains that occurred on Sunday, flooding caused significant damage to the roads of Chertsey, in Lanaudière. Dozens of campers also had to be evacuated.

Jessica Laporte-Mauceri will long remember this Midsummer weekend, when she came from Terrebonne with her partner to camp in the Ouareau forest, in Chertsey. But when the level of the Ouareau River began to rise, the escapade turned into a nightmare.

In 36 hours, no less than 120 mm of precipitation fell on Chertsey. With its 110 lakes and 58 dams, such bad weather inevitably causes flooding.

When they woke up, the tent of Jessica Laporte-Mauceri and her companion was surrounded by water. After calling the fire brigade, they had to pack their belongings and leave in a hurry, leaving behind their soggy tent and sleeping bags.

“If we had known, we would have taken a kayak,” she jokes, nevertheless still in shock.

The firefighters had to evacuate around ten campers who, like M^me Laporte-Mauceri and his companion had pitched their tents near the Ouareau River.

Not far from there, in Rawdon, nearly 200 young people who were celebrating their after-party had to be rescued overnight from Sunday to Monday, after the campsite where they spent the night was flooded. Around ten members of the Rawdon fire department were mobilized for this rescue which lasted four hours, according to Quebecor media information. However, no one was injured.

Significant damage on the roads

In total, around thirty roads suffered damage. On Monday, many roads were still damaged – or even impassable –, noted The Press on the spot. Nearly a hundred people were still isolated in the middle of the day, but thanks to emergency work carried out throughout the night and during the day, 95% of them were able to move around again by the end of the afternoon. , according to the city’s general manager, Marc-André Plante.

However, several damaged roads could require more work, which could take time, said Mayor Michelle Joly during a press briefing. “All the structures on our lakes are under control and safe,” she said at the end of the day.

“It was really impressive, our land had become a lake,” says Normand Dumas, a resident of Chertsey who lives on rue de l’Église. The road near his home was damaged within “a few minutes” when the lake upstream from his home overflowed. A dam also burst not far from his home.

This is the fifth time this has happened. Each time, the municipality must redo the road. It does not make sense.

Norman Dumas

No residences were flooded apart from a few “minor situations”, he told The Press Marc-André Plante. There has been no illness or accident as far as he knows, but a young mother found herself running out of milk for her baby. The emergency services intervened at VTT to take him to a pharmacy and allow him to buy some.

For his part, Richard, who has lived on Chemin Michel for a dozen years, immediately set about the task of clearing the alley in front of his house. However, the gaping holes left in the asphalt after the passage of water will still have to be filled. “It had happened to us before, but never to this extent,” he explains. We are still lucky. Elsewhere, it’s really worse. »

Owners returned in disaster

Jacques Forget returned from Montreal in disaster when he heard the news on the radio. His residence, located on the shores of Swan Lake, fortunately did not suffer any major damage, but the water rose almost a meter at the level of the lake’s spillway.

We were lucky. In the spring, right here, we had water up to our ankles.

Jacques Forget

A neighbor I met near his home added that he had never seen the water level of the Ouareau River so high. “What we fear is that one day, the dike will no longer hold,” he confides.

Marc-André Plante indicated that measures would be taken to prevent the situation from recurring in the future, in particular by lowering the water level of Swan Lake. A decision that could relieve residents living downstream, but dissatisfy those upstream.

“In a context of climate change, it is difficult to manage variations in water levels. We are in the process of carrying out an independent study on the different watersheds, including Swan Lake, to find an acceptable compromise and avoid overflows,” he indicated in an interview with The Press.

Citizens are encouraged to report any damage, particularly to septic tanks, to the municipality.

With Thomas Emmanuel Côté, The Press and The Canadian Press