Quebec suffers from "significant thaw" and Easter rains
Officials say flood to worsen as temperatures increase
Quebec suffers from "significant thaw" and Easter rains
CATASTROPHE & FLOOD
By Lyle Adriano
22 Apr 2019

More than a thousand homes across Quebec have been flooded in over the weekend, as temperatures rise, snow melts, and heavy rain falls

The flooding event – Quebec’s second major flooding event in three years – comes just days after the province had passed a new disaster relief program, which puts a restriction on the amount of compensation given to homeowners in flood-prone areas.

Read more: Quebec's new disaster relief program sets caps on flood compensation

Many of the flood-affected homes lie in communities south of Quebec City; at least half of the flooded-in properties are in Sainte-Marie, CBC News reported.

According to Environment and Climate Change Canada meteorologist Marie-Ève Giguère, Quebec “had exactly the ingredients” to create a severe flooding scenario.

“A significant thaw, overnight lows above zero and a lot of rain,” the expert explained.

While the water levels of the Ottawa and Gatineau rivers – which rose 6 to 10 centimetres overnight at the height of the flooding - have begun to stabilize, some other properties in Quebec are still at high risk of flooding.

Gatineau mayor Maxime Pedneaud-Jobin told a press conference that 985 properties in the community were in danger from the flood waters.

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