The cleanup is underway after a record-breaking 118 mm of rain soaked Ottawa on Canada Day, flooding roads and basements and cancelling birth celebrations across Ottawa.
Rain and thunderstorms began moving through the national capital region between 1 p.m. and 2 p.m. on Wednesday, forcing the cancellation of several Canada Day events across Ottawa.
Flooding was reported on residential streets and on Highways 416 and 417 through the afternoon and early evening, with several roads temporarily closed through the afternoon and evening.
Mayor Mark Sutcliffe said more than 1,900 people called 3-1-1 to report their basements had flooded.
“Because the volume of calls was so high, it was difficult for our agents to keep up with the demand, so that number is likely to rise in the coming days,” Sutcliffe said during a news conference at Ottawa City Hall Thursday afternoon.
“This will take time. We know that in the next few days it will be difficult for hundreds of families, but they will not be alone. We will be there to support them.”
According to a memo from Ottawa’s general manager of Emergency and Protective Services, Ryan Perrault, shared by Coun. Glen Gower on social media, the highest number of requests for service continue to come from Ward 8 (College), Ward 7 (Bay), and Ward 9 (Knoxdale-Merivale).
“Resources remain focused on these communities, while ensuring response efforts continue across the city based on public safety and operational priorities,” the letter says.
“Our crews have made significant progress in clearing roads, addressing traffic disruptions, responding to blocked sewer basins, and managing other storm-related impacts. We have upstaffed across several service areas to accelerate response efforts and restore services as quickly and safely as possible. Work also continues to address downed trees throughout the city. Crews are prioritizing trees that pose an immediate risk to public safety, including those blocking roads or affecting emergency vehicle access.”
Ottawa Fire Services said its dispatchers handled 673 calls to 9-1-1 between 2 p.m. and 11 p.m. Wednesday.
Environment Canada says 118 mm of rain was recorded at the Ottawa Airport on Wednesday, setting a record for the greatest rainfall on July 1 in Ottawa history. The previous rainfall record for July 1 in Ottawa was 58.9 mm, set in 1959.
The total comes second for all-time rainfall in Ottawa history, behind Sept. 9, 2004’s record of 135.4 mm, which was caused by remnants of Hurricane Frances.
“We believe this was one of the worst flooding events in our city in the last 25 years,” Sutcliffe said.
“I want you to know, we’re with you. We’re here to support you.”
The Ottawa Police Service says two roads remained closed due to flooding Thursday morning – Moodie Drive south of Carling Avenue and Scott Street between Hinchey Avenue and Stirling Avenue.
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Ottawa residents
Jarrett Mohns, a resident in the Qualicum-Redwood Park neighbourhood, in Ottawa’s west-end, says residents on his street became concerned about flooding after a nearby catchment began overflowing, turning a typically quiet creek behind the homes, into a torrent.
Mohns says the water swelled by more than two meters, which also caused a footbridge to dislodge and break apart.
“It was whitewater and deck boards were just floating by,” he says. “It was definitely crazy, one of the craziest experiences I’ve had.”
Mohns, like other residents on the street, began to see water pour in from basement windows, and gurgle up from floor drains, quickly flooding basements.
“We got up to about two feet of water,” he says. “We just kept the sump pumps going, and then we lost power, and then I had to get the generator going and get more sumps going. Our furnace and air conditioning are probably done, but I don’t know really.”
When Mohns spoke to CTV News Ottawa on Thursday, he said his home was still without power.
For many of the flood-affected residents, their basement belongings are now trash and must be hauled out of homes.
David Oweis, with 911 Restoration, says the family-run company has received more than 200 phone calls since last night, as people look to sanitize and dry-out basements.
“We will be working all day and probably through the night too,” he says. “We have a variety of different services and techniques to ensure the area have been cleaned-up and dried-out. Most of the time it’s coming up from underneath the foundation and floors are having to come up, drywall must be removed. It destroys everything. It’s not good.”
Terry Fraser lives near Woodroffe Avenue and has gone 19 years “without a drop” of water in his basement, but that changed on Wednesday.
“I called one of my neighbors across the street to warn him he may have water, and he said he’s been here 38 years without a drop of water in his basement,” he said.
Fraser’s job is to help people with foundation water proofing and repairs following flooring. He says he never thought he would experience it himself.
“Calls, texts, voicemails, emails and everything. Probably over 100 so far today and maybe even more,” Fraser said.
“I answer them as fast as they’re coming in.”
Fraser says some in his neighbourhood are concerned that recent construction in the area could have been a factor in the fooding.
“They built a reservoir up at the top of Woodroffe here, right by Baseline, which is basically a block away from us,” he said. “That reservoir is supposed to take the overflow of water away. That’s the only real thing that is changed in our area.”
Sutcliffe says it’s too early to draw any conclusions about the causes of the damage.
“There was flooding all over the city and there was a record amount of rainfall,” Sutcliffe said. “I don’t see how we can draw any conclusions right now.”
City of Ottawa
“This was an unbelievable storm,” Sutcliffe said Thursday morning. “It was at a level that was unanticipated, so it has affected a huge number of Ottawa residents.”
Sutcliffe is encouraging residents experiencing flooding to use the city’s online portal.
“I spoke to a few people last night who had lost everything that was in their basement, so, you know, we’re going to be dealing with stories like that. I encourage people to connect with their insurance companies, and again, if you haven’t already, please go online and report your flooded basement at the 3-1-1 portal that’s on our website,” Sutcliffe said. “That allows us to be faster and more efficient at responding to you than if you’re calling 3-1-1, which will take longer, so please use the website.”
Sutcliffe says he has asked city staff to suspend garbage limits and waive building fees for people who need to repair their basements.
“We’re looking at extra garbage collection days for people who are getting rid of material that’s been damaged by flooded basements. We’re looking at lifting the limits on garbage collection over the next week for the same reason,” the mayor said.
“For people who are later going to need to renovate and repair their basements, we’re going to look at waiving the building permit fees associated with that, so we’ll do everything we can to support people who are affected by this.”
Public Works general manager Alain Gonthier says the city’s solid waste team is looking into what changes will be needed in the coming weeks.
“What we ask is that basically, if you have additional waste that’s flood related, we will be scheduling additional pickups, so no yellow bags for those that are impacted directly by the basement flooding are required. Construction debris will not be collected. What we’re trying to focus on is basically debris and basements have been impacted by the flood,” he said.
Gonthier added the Trail Road Landfill will accept residential construction debris and electronic waste and it will be open on the next three Saturdays to help accommodate residents affected by the storm.
In an update Wednesday evening, the city said its Emergency Command Centre was assessing city-wide impacts, including power outages, localized flooding on roadways and in basements, downed trees and other service impacts.
“City services and our partner agencies continue to respond across the community,” Perrault said in a statement.
“While response efforts remain ongoing, some services have been operating at reduced capacity due to the statutory holiday, and in some instances staff were required to shelter in place until it was safe to respond.”
At least one city facility was affected by flooding.
College Ward Coun. Laine Johnson said Ben Franklin Place, including the service centre and the Centrepointe branch of the Ottawa Public Library, were flooded and was closed Thursday.
“It’s a concern for me because that is a cooling station, identified by the city,” Johnson told Newstalk 580 CFRA.
Johnson said she didn’t know the full extent of the damage at Ben Franklin Place.
“Because that’s not a residential area, I think crews are looking elsewhere to support some of those that are in more dire straits at this time.”
Johnson said the Pinecrest Recreation Complex near Baseline Road and Centrepoint Drive would be open for cooling and other uses.
“The City is opening all recreation centres, including Pinecrest Recreation Centre, as emergency coolling centres. Just a reminder that Ben Franklin Place, including the library branch, will be closed indefinitely due to flooding,” she said on Facebook.
Other institutions
Cornerstone Housing for Women said its emergency shelter has been flooded.
A spokesperson for the shelter told CTV News Ottawa that staff are working with the city to pump water out of the basement and ground floor after the kitchen and main entrance flooded.
Some mattresses were and PPE were damaged by the floods.
The Queensway Carleton Hospital said a few areas of the hospital were affected by the rain but all clinical services, appointments, and procedures continue as scheduled.
The Ottawa Hospital said some areas of the Irving Greenberg Family Cancer Centre on the Queensway Carleton Hospital campus were affected by flooding. Appointments are being reviewed on a patient-by-patient basis. Where appropriate, care may be provided virtually or at an alternate location.
“Patients whose appointments or treatments are affected will be contacted directly by their care team with the next steps,” the Ottawa Hospital said in a release. “Unless instructed otherwise, patients should continue to come to their scheduled appointments.”
The Ottawa Public Library says two branches are closed due to flooding - Nepean Centrepointe Branch and the Carlingwood branch.
Hydro
Approximately 5,300 customers remained without power across Ottawa on Thursday afternoon.
“Crews have been working through the night in very challenging, wet conditions and localized flooding, which limited our ability to safely access affected infrastructure,” Hydro Ottawa said on its website.
“Our immediate priority today is addressing the remaining larger outages, before moving to the smaller, localized pocket outages and individual service lines, which means the overall restoration numbers may appear to move more slowly. It is important to note the primary challenges in our restoration efforts involve flooded underground transformers which restricted safe access for our crews.”
According to the Hydro Ottawa outage map, approximately 1,100 customers are without power in the Bells Corners and Bruce Farm neighbourhood.
In a letter to council, Hydro Ottawa CEO Bryce Conrad said the “primary challenges” involved flooded underground transformers.
“One of our largest circuits to be addressed today, impacting just over 1,000 customers near the Queensway Carleton Hospital, remains without power due to severe flooding,” Conrad said.
“We are coordinating with the city to ensure the area is safe for our crews to begin repairs and restore power to those impacted.”
He adds Hydro Ottawa crews “will not stop working around the clock until ever single home and business is reconnected.”
Speaking with reporters Thursday afternoon, Conrad said crews are managing submerged electrical infrastructure and tree contracts.
“I want to manage expectations regarding the pace of the remaining restoration. Our immediate priority is address the remaining larger outages, bringing the highest number of customers back online safety,” Conrad said.
“Let me be clear, water and electricity are a fatal combination. Those heavily flooded zones across the city we simply cannot flip a switch. We either have to wait for the water levels to recede or we have to work with the city to pump them out.”
Hydro One is reporting more than 15,000 customers without power on Thursday in an area stretching from Kingston to Ottawa and Cornwall. The largest outages are in the Gananoque area and the Brockville area.
“We’re responding as safely and quickly as possible to outages caused by thunderstorms across the province. The estimated time of restoration may change when crews are onsite and start repairs based on additional damage, repairs or work required,” Hydro One says.
“After a storm, Hydro One prioritizes restoration in a way that brings power back to the greatest number of customers in the shortest period of time. Crews need to repair and rebuild main lines along with other key pieces of critical electricity infrastructure in your community before repairs can be made to power lines that serve smaller numbers of customers.”
Nearly 1,000 residents of rural east Ottawa on Hydro One’s grid were without power as of 10:45 a.m. Thursday, including Vars and Carlsbad Springs.
Power is expected to be restored by this evening to most customers.
As of July 2 at 2 p.m., Hydro Quebec reported 3,639 customers without power in the Outaouais region, including 179 in Gatineau.
With files from CTV’s Natalie van Rooy and Tyler Fleming.
