Send this page to someone via email The City of Montreal has declared a state of emergency due to rising floodwaters in numerous boroughs. The decree allows the city to order mandatory evacuations. It also gives the fire department, tasked with co-ordinating flood relief efforts, more powers to spend money, requisition private property and take other measures to protect homes. READ MORE: Pierrefonds mayor credits preparation for limited flooding so far WATCH: Montreal Mayor Valerie Plante announced on Friday that they had declared a state of emergency in response to flooding in the region. 2:10 Montreal declares state of emergency in response to flooding Montreal declares state of emergency in response to flooding – Apr 26, 2019 Mayor Valérie Plante made the announcement at a press conference in Pierrefonds Friday afternoon. Story continues below advertisement She said that while the situation remains stable in the affected boroughs, such as Pierrefonds-Roxboro, Île-Bizard and the Ahuntsic-Cartierville, water levels are expected to continue rising as unrelenting rain pounds the city. “We are looking at the situation minute by minute, hour by hour and if there is an evacuation that is needed then we will be doing it,” Plante said. WATCH: Authorities are closely watching the Bell Falls Dam in Quebec. The dam is dangerously over capacity and everyone down river is under a mandatory evacuation order. Mike Armstrong reports. 2:01 Mandatory evacuations amid fears of Bell Falls Dam failure in QC Mandatory evacuations amid fears of Bell Falls Dam failure in QC – Apr 26, 2019 So far, there have been no forced evacuations in the city. “Two years ago, with the same water flows, we had hundreds, over 400, flooded homes and hundreds of evacuations,” said fire Chief Bruno Lachance. “This year, we have 11 evacuations and about 50 flood-affected buildings.” Story continues below advertisement READ MORE: How to protect yourself and your home from flooding Lachance credits flood-prevention efforts and a quick-response time for the limited damage so far. “Our dikes are completely adequate at the moment, but there’s no guarantee there won’t be a breach if the waters continue to rise,” he said. WATCH: Ile-Bizard playing catch up amid flooding 1:59 Ile-Bizard playing catch up amid flooding Ile-Bizard playing catch up amid flooding – Apr 25, 2019 READ MORE: Rigaud issues mandatory evacuation order as Quebec deals with record flooding Lachance explained the state of emergency is a preventative measure that will allow for more latitude, if the worst were to happen. “If a dike were to fail, it could immediately flood 30, 40 or 50 homes,” he said. “Under those circumstances, we prefer declaring a preventive state of emergency which gives us more leeway to react quickly and take the necessary actions.” Story continues below advertisement WATCH: Army now ordering people to leave flooded Quebec homes 0:38 Army now ordering people to leave flooded Quebec homes Army now ordering people to leave flooded Quebec homes – Apr 26, 2019<doc-sep>Send this page to someone via email Environment Canada has issued a rainfall warning for Greater Montreal. “Rainfall amounts … are expected through Saturday afternoon.” READ MORE: Flooding, climate change force Quebecers to rethink relationship with water Up to 55 mm of rain is expected Friday for the Montreal region, with winds gusting up to 40 km/h by the afternoon. Another five to 10 mm of rain should drizzle down periodically Saturday morning. WATCH BELOW: Rigaud residents brace for flooding 1:35 Rigaud residents brace for flooding Rigaud residents brace for flooding – Apr 18, 2019 This could lead to flooding in low-lying areas. Story continues below advertisement Several municipalities across the province are already preparing for potential flooding. READ MORE: Quebec towns prepare for massive flooding as province urges residents to not take chances The City of Rigaud is asking residents to be prepared to leave their homes, though it states it has launched emergency protocols. “We are ready to act,” said Rigaud Mayor Hans Gruenwald. Tweet This Click to share quote on Twitter: "We are ready to act," said Rigaud Mayor Hans Gruenwald. Vaudreuil-Dorion, just west of the Island of Montreal, has also put its emergency flood plan in motion. WATCH BELOW: Montreal Fire Department on flood preparations 0:36 Montreal Fire Department on flood preparations Montreal Fire Department on flood preparations – Apr 17, 2019 In Montreal, city officials and the local fire department are going door to door in its northern Ahuntsic-Cartierville borough to ensure people are ready to act if flooding hits their area. Story continues below advertisement READ MORE: Rigaud launches emergency measures as Quebec cities, towns brace for flooding In Laval, authorities are giving out sandbags to residents as water from the Rivière des Mille Îles begins to spill onto streets. In Beauceville, about 90 kilometres south of Quebec City, rising floodwaters from the Chaudière River have already forced dozens of people to leave their homes. WATCH BELOW: Pierrefonds residents on high alert amid flooding concerns 1:50 Pierrefonds residents on high alert amid flooding concerns Pierrefonds residents on high alert amid flooding concerns – Apr 17, 2019 Quebec Public Security Minister Geneviève Guilbault is urging people in regions at risk of flooding not to take any chances and to follow the advice of civil security officials. READ MORE: Pierrefonds on high alert for spring flooding, prepares for the worst Rainfall warnings are issued when significant rainfall is expected. Advertisement<doc-sep>Flooding has closed several streets and highways in the Montreal area. Here is a list of the most important road closures, and what the government is doing to mitigate the traffic tie-ups they will cause on Monday. Detours: None. Vehicles can not get on or off the island. We apologize, but this video has failed to load. Flooding has closed several streets and highways in the Montreal area. Here is a list of the most important road closures, updated May 3. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Article content Laval Île-Bigras bridge (Dupont St.) Closed in both directions. Detours: None. Vehicles can not get on or off the island. Mitigating measures: Free train shuttle between Île-Bigras and Ste-Dorothée stations, with departures every half hour on the weekend and overnights. On weekdays, Exo trains on the Deux-Montagnes line will be free between Île-Bigras and Ste-Dorothée stations only. North Shore Route 117 in Mirabel between Highway 50 and Route 158 Closed completely in both directions. Detour: Highway 15. Mitigating measures: Service on the Exo’s St-Jérôme train line will be free on weekdays, as will Laurentians region buses 9, 11, 12, 15, 17, 20, 22, 23, 27, 51, 52, 60, 61, 62, 71, 72, 73, 74, 88, 100, 101, 102, 103, 105 and 107.<doc-sep>MONTREAL -- As a steady rain moved into Quebec Friday, Montreal declared a state of emergency and authorities closely monitored a dam and a dike that were placing residents at risk to the west of the city. Provincial police were patrolling an area of homes and cottages along the Rouge River, about 140 kilometres west of Montreal, where 75 people were forced out when a hydro dam was declared to be at risk of failing. Meanwhile, Canadian Forces soldiers were dispatched to reinforce a dike in Pointe-Calumet -- northwest of Montreal by the Lake of Two Mountains -- that was threatening to give way and force 1,000 people from their homes. Montreal Mayor Valerie Plante said the situation in Quebec's largest city is under control, but added the heavy rain in the forecast could change conditions rapidly. She said the emergency declaration gives Montreal's fire chief the authority to force evacuations and spend money without requiring city council's approval. About 100 kilometres northeast of Montreal, hectares of farmland were flooded between the shores of the St. Lawrence River and the Felix-Leclerc Highway. Near the town of Yamachiche, the water has risen to completely surround France Bellemare's home. "You should come here in the summer -- it's paradise," she said, as she climbed into a canoe by the side of her house. About a week ago, there was a roughly five-metre drop to the lake behind a stone wall at the edge of her property, she said. But as of Friday afternoon, only a few centimetres of stone could be seen jutting above the waves. Holding a paddle in her hands, Bellemare said she still hasn't been fully compensated by the government for the floods of 2017. She knows her home is in a flood zone, but she doesn't want to leave. Authorities, she said, should let her and her neighbours build a higher wall to better shield their homes. But she said they aren't allowed. "This wall was built 20 years ago," she said. "Technology has progressed, yet we can't touch anything. They should give us the flexibility to build a new structure." Next door, Christian Montigny and his wife, Ginette, were sitting in their living room overlooking the lake. A massive tree trunk was floating beside their porch, which normally would have been several metres above the water. Montigny said despite the frequent floods, they love living near the lake. Montigny smiled when asked if he was prepared to take money from the provincial government to relocate. "We're not going anywhere," he said. West of Montreal in Grenville-sur-la-Rouge, provincial police Sgt. Marc Tessier said evacuees left voluntarily after public security officials issued an alert Thursday afternoon warning that the Chute Bell dam was at risk. Some in more remote areas had to be airlifted by helicopter, and police planned to remain in the area to ensure no one returned. "Our message is, if you're in the zone, we're going to ask you to leave," Tessier said. "We don't have a time frame for when they'll (be able to) go back." The evacuated area stretches about 18 kilometres south to the Ottawa River in Quebec's Lower Laurentians region. The alert is in effect until May 3. The infrastructure was intended to withstand what officials call a millennial flood -- an occurrence expected once in a thousand years. Francis Labbe, a Hydro-Quebec spokesman, said those levels have been reached, and with rain in the forecast, the Rouge River will likely rise. "Right now everything is stable, it's under control," Labbe said Friday. "The problem is the rain that we are expecting in the next 24 hours or so, and we know this rain will make the flow of the river rise 30 per cent more than what it is right now." Eric Moisan, another utility spokesman, acknowledged that once the river flow surpasses the current 980 cubic metres per second, "we don't know how the power station will perform." He noted that a dam does not necessarily give way when the flow is excessive. "It's concrete. It's very solid," he said. Public Security Minister Genevieve Guilbault said heavy rain -- particularly in the northern Outaouais and north of Quebec City -- will cause water levels to the south to rise, and people living near bodies of water at risk need to be prepared. As of 1 p.m. Friday, Quebec's Public Security Department said 3,148 residences had been flooded in the province, 2,362 residences had been cut off due to rising waters and 1,110 people had been forced from their homes. In Gatineau, Mayor Maxime Pedneaud-Jobin warned residents Friday to prepare for the worst. "By Monday or Tuesday, we should exceed the highest levels of 2017," he said, adding it could stay that way for up to two weeks. "What we will live through in the coming weeks, we've never experienced."<doc-sep>
A state of emergency is in place on the island of Montreal due to the threat of flooding in several areas. Mayor Valérie Plante made that announcement in the borough hardest hit by flooding, Pierrefonds–Roxboro in Montreal's West Island, Friday afternoon. The state of emergency gives the city the power to seize land, to make evacuations mandatory and to put in place other flood prevention measures. It covers the City of Montreal and demerged municipalities on the island. "It's never our first choice to ask people to leave their homes," said Plante at a news briefing announcing the state of emergency. "People need to understand that this is serious. This is dangerous." So far, a dozen homes in the Pierrefonds district have been identified as needing to be evacuated immediately. Montreal Mayor Valérie Plante, centre, declares a state of emergency. (CBC) Municipal officials said firefighters have been coding homes with yellow or red stickers: yellow means a home is at risk, and red means a mandatory evacuation. Eleven of the 12 homes identified with red stickers have been evacuated. But more evacuations may be needed this weekend, said the head of the Montreal Fire Service, Bruno Lachance, who is co-ordinating all flood relief efforts now that the state of emergency has been declared. And here they go... #flood2019 #Inondations2019 pic.twitter.com/pIZCs1nqHP —@TurnbullJay Lachance said that some of the dikes that have been built up with the assistance of the Armed Forces may not be able to withstand the rising water. It's important that residents of Île-Bizard, Pierrefonds and Ahuntsic be prepared to leave their homes, Lachance said, as it's unclear which dikes will overflow. This is the type of balloon that municipal workers will be stuffing inside a drain pipe in Pierrefonds to block the Rivières des Prairies from flooding streets. (City of Montreal) Pierrefonds–Roxboro Mayor Jim Beis said residents were told what to do in case of an evacuation order as part of the borough's flood preparation. "The safety of our residents is the number one priority," he said. According to the latest numbers from Quebec's Public Security Ministry, 75 homes in Montreal have flooded. The city last declared a state of emergency in May 2017, when the Rivière-des-Prairies caused flooding in many of the same areas now underwater. Armed Forces personnel use sandbags to protect a house against the floodwaters in Laval, Que., on Thursday. (Ryan Remiorz/Canadian Press) Island residents asked to leave The City of Laval is recommending the evacuation of several areas at high risk of flooding, as floodwaters continue to rise. The neighbouring city expects that rain in the forecast Friday night and on Saturday, mixed with melting snow, will raise water levels beyond those reached in 2017. Residents living on Bigras, Parizeau, Verte and Roussin islands are strongly encouraged to leave their homes. The same applies to residents of Laval's main island, Île Jésus, living in areas designated Zone A. The zones can be found on Laval's interactive map. A man pulls a dog in a boat along a flooded street as he leaves his home in Rigaud, west of Montreal, Friday. (Graham Hughes/Canadian Press) More rain expected With the rainy forecast, towns all over southern Quebec are preparing for more flooding. On the Lake of Two Mountains, communities like Pointe-Calumet — just north of Île-Bizard — are bracing for the worst. In Rigaud, near the Quebec-Ontario border, where the Ottawa and Rigaud rivers have both overflowed their banks, fire Chief Daniel Boyer says the weekend will be a "marathon," as the Ottawa River approaches levels not seen in a century. La digue de Pointe-Calumet va-t-elle tenir le coup? « Si elle cède on est dans la... » me dit un résident #inondations pic.twitter.com/MQSkD597KK —@melissa_francoi The town issued a mandatory evacuation order Friday morning, but officials said they would not force residents out of their homes if they refused to leave. After enduring many days of flooding, residents trying to tough it out should "put up their hands and evacuate," Boyer said. "I think that's the most important thing to do now." "Some people are sure to stay, but like I said, the countdown is on," said Boyer. "Every day, morale drops, strength decreases." "Stop fighting it. It's going to continue to rise. The flood is going to continue to rise."