From July 18 to 21, 1996, a major depression resulted in 260 mm of rain falling within a fifty-hour period on the Laurentian Wildlife Reserve and the Saguenay-Lac-Saint-Jean region.
The soil, which was already oversaturated after a particularly rainy month, could not absorb the excess water from the Saguenay River's drainage basins.
The heavy rainfall rapidly increased the discharge from the Ha!
Ha!
Bay's tributaries' river basins and other Saguenay waterways.
The first signs of disaster appeared on the night of July 18 to 19.
Land erosion caused a house in Grande-Baie to be ripped apart and sewers located near the banks of the Ha!
Ha!
River began to back up.
The Ha!
Ha!
and Mars Rivers' discharges quickly became dangerous and blocked access to the bridges that crossed them.
The situation was at its lowest point when a dam on Ha!
Ha!
Lake ruptured and washed away central Grande-Baie.

La Baie, and especially the Grande-Baie sector, was the town that was the most heavily hit by the Saguenay Flood.
Fifty million dollars were required to rebuild public infrastructure and an additional thirty million were needed to stabilize the Ha!
Ha!
and Mars riverbanks.
The railways were heavily damaged, which paralyzed the city's economy, cut off drinking water supplies, and isolated areas east of the Mars River.
Transportation to lower Saguenay was impossible, leaving sectors of Port-Alfred and Grande-Baie completely isolated.

Reconstruction of the Grande-Baie sector and the development of the commemorative Ha!
Ha!
Park began in 1997.
The Ha!
Ha!
Pyramid was built in 1998 and officially inaugurated in 2000.

Uniboard built the Panneaux MDF La Baie Inc. plant in 1997, which made medium-density fibreboard out of wood residue.
In 2001, rumours about the Abitibi-Consolidated mill in Port-Alfred shutting down began to surface after eighty-nine people were laid off.

As 2002 approached, the Town of La Baie began opposing the Quebec government's plan for municipal mergers after the Department of Municipal Affairs published a white paper called Municipal Reorganization: Changing the Way We Do Things to Better Serve Citizens (French: La Réorganisation municipale: changer les façons de faire pour mieux server les citoyens) on April 25, 2000.
Some of La Baie's elected officials expressed opposition to the imminent municipal mergers in the Saguenay region by joining Laterrière in refusing to sit on transition committees.
Despite this, the mergers were officialized and the November 25, 2001, municipal elections for borough representatives were held for the new city of Saguenay.
From July 18 to 21, 1996, a major depression resulted in 260 mm of rain falling within a fifty-hour period on the Laurentian Wildlife Reserve and the Saguenay-Lac-Saint-Jean region. The soil, which was already oversaturated after a particularly rainy month, could not absorb the excess water from the Saguenay River's drainage basins. The heavy rainfall rapidly increased the discharge from the Ha! Ha! Bay's tributaries' river basins and other Saguenay waterways. The first signs of disaster appeared on the night of July 18 to 19. Land erosion caused a house in Grande-Baie to be ripped apart and sewers located near the banks of the Ha! Ha! River began to back up. The Ha! Ha! and Mars Rivers' discharges quickly became dangerous and blocked access to the bridges that crossed them. The situation was at its lowest point when a dam on Ha! Ha! Lake ruptured and washed away central Grande-Baie.
La Baie, and especially the Grande-Baie sector, was the town that was the most heavily hit by the Saguenay Flood. Fifty million dollars were required to rebuild public infrastructure and an additional thirty million were needed to stabilize the Ha! Ha! and Mars riverbanks. The railways were heavily damaged, which paralyzed the city's economy, cut off drinking water supplies, and isolated areas east of the Mars River. Transportation to lower Saguenay was impossible, leaving sectors of Port-Alfred and Grande-Baie completely isolated.
Reconstruction of the Grande-Baie sector and the development of the commemorative Ha! Ha! Park began in 1997. The Ha! Ha! Pyramid was built in 1998 and officially inaugurated in 2000.
Uniboard built the Panneaux MDF La Baie Inc. plant in 1997, which made medium-density fibreboard out of wood residue. In 2001, rumours about the Abitibi-Consolidated mill in Port-Alfred shutting down began to surface after eighty-nine people were laid off.
As 2002 approached, the Town of La Baie began opposing the Quebec government's plan for municipal mergers after the Department of Municipal Affairs published a white paper called Municipal Reorganization: Changing the Way We Do Things to Better Serve Citizens (French: La Réorganisation municipale: changer les façons de faire pour mieux server les citoyens) on April 25, 2000. Some of La Baie's elected officials expressed opposition to the imminent municipal mergers in the Saguenay region by joining Laterrière in refusing to sit on transition committees. Despite this, the mergers were officialized and the November 25, 2001, municipal elections for borough representatives were held for the new city of Saguenay.
La Baie