Little ol’ Yarmouth had national coverage on CBC news recently with the highest recorded water levels (and inland flooding) in recorded history. Not the kind of news we relish. But when 250 ml of rain dumped in less than three days, rivers and lakes shot upwards of 12-15 feet and the force of the sheer volume of water whacked out bridges, slithered over roads and crept into people’s homes.
Neighbours come calling through the trees
Must say it was one of the most anxiety-producing events of my life. We live on the Tusket River and the water kept rising one to two inches an hour. The odd thing is that when we were planning where to build the house seven years ago, we had torrential rains that spring and the river rose to an all-time 100-year high. Noting the high water mark, we actually started the foundation back several feet. We never imagined that the river would ever, ever raise higher than that 100-year high mark.
Well, it did. It crept well over that all-time high and kept coming closer and closer and closer. One morning, neighbours Willie and Keith Roque visited via canoe. In the photo, they have paddled through the trees right over our fire pit which is about 30 ft. from our front deck.
Quinan Flood photo by Brad d'Entremont
Barrie brought boxes home and I made a mental list of what we’d have to pack if we needed to evacuate. Mercifully the water crested through the night–mere feet away. But, families across the river were not as fortunate as you can see from this photo taken by Brad d’Entremont. It will take months to clean up the mess in Yarmouth County. Can’t help but wonder: would the results of having all this rain been as severe if there was not as much clear cutting in our region? Seems mother nature is rebelling.
