Joanne Sisco

Water, Water, Everywhere

The big news story right now in Eastern Canada is the weather.

We’ve been having a lot of it – mostly of the monsoon-like rain variety – and that’s been translating into flooding. A lot of it.

The Toronto area has been relatively lucky, but in Eastern Ontario and Quebec, there are whole communities under water and the flood waters haven’t yet peaked.

When I posted for the April Changing Seasons, I included a photo of one of our flooded beaches.  Since then however, conditions have worsened.  This past weekend I ventured out to Rouge Park to see the impact of our wild weather on this section of Lake Ontario.

In short – it’s a mess.

The normally pristine beach is littered with debris washed up by pounding storm waves, as far as the eye can see.

Rouge Park

If I didn’t know that the shoreline isn’t normally right underneath the lifeguard tower, I wouldn’t have thought that the water level was unusually high.

The real water story however is in the parking lot – or what used to be the parking lot. Now it has been claimed by its neighbour – the wetland – which borders it.  The wetland has been swollen to overflowing by the bloated Rouge River which drains into Lake Ontario.

Rouge4

In the brisk wind, the waves lapped dangerously close to the tops of my rubber boots.  I didn’t dare venture out too far into the deepening water.

Rouge3

Even the speed bumps are underwater.

Rouge5

Nothing is moving too quickly through this area right now … well, except for the ducks.  I admit it was amusing to see ducks swimming around in the parking lot.  That isn’t a sight one encounters everyday.

While I’m lamenting the cold, damp weather, I’m hoping for drier days ahead for less selfish reasons.  I’m hoping that all those people who have been forced from their homes due to flooding can soon return.

Unfortunately they will be looking at a horrible cleanup ahead.

Rouge2

Only the ducks are very happy right now.

88 comments

  3. Hello Joanne! It’s been too long since I’ve been able to visit …and I’m so sorry to be reading about flooding. There’s been so much of it this year, all over North America.
    But no Climate Change, oh no! (she says with sarcasm).
    Hopefully folks are getting back into their homes … even if there is a long road ahead in terms of cleanup

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    • I think that the people affected are now at the ‘frustrated and angry’ stage 😦
      I feel for them … when your home is ‘violated’ it makes you feel really vulnerable.

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  7. In New England, we’ve been getting lots of extra rain too. We needed it – we were in a drought in early winter. But boy, I’d like to see a bit of spring sunshine now. I hope YOU have a sunny weekend – we’re expecting….a rain storm. ;-0

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    • It can’t decide whether it wants to rain or not. It starts spitting and then the sun comes out again. I’m ok with it either way, although I’d prefer some sunshine for a few days.
      Yesterday on the news they were reporting that the lake continues to rise. Hopefully I can get out tomorrow morning and check the water levels at a different part of the shoreline.

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  8. Seems to be a lot of excess water over there this year. Where I live in the UK we could end up with a drought unless we get some of that rain.

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    • A little sun and warmth would go a long way right now 🙂
      I was back down at the beach yesterday where I took the photo of the adirondack chairs in the flood water. The water is now up to the arms of the chairs.
      It’s a long way to go before the waters recede back to where they should be.

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  11. What a shame about the flooding, and especially the damage to property.
    While growing up here in the Silicon Valley when we’d have a good rainy season there would be flooding down where the river met the sea, and for years that community and downtown would get flooded. Finally the city got smart and started working on fixing the problem. Then we’d have years, and years, and years of drought, and everyone forgot about the places that flood in the good wet winters. This past winter, and now Spring have been a drought busting! A couple of months back parts of North San Jose flooded but before that the city, and water companies said as they watched the reservoirs fill up to the brim,” don’t worry it’ll be fine.” NOT! So many people’s homes were damaged. The clean up is just about over, but the city and taxpayers are going to be on the hook for damages unfortunately.
    Hopefully, they’re busy at the drawing board figuring out new ways to prevent flooding in that area in the next big, wet winter. Cause there’s going to be one, and another long drought too so I hope they’re working on new ways to conserved/save water too. It’s just how California has seemed to roll since I’ve lived here for all but one year of my life.

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    • We had heard about the flooding in California – but in the Salinas area with the dam that almost burst. You guys just can’t seem to get a break. It’s either years of drought, wild fires, or dams bursting to overflow!!

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  13. Climate change is doing some crazy things with the weather. Flooding is becoming more common in our area too. I hope the weather dries for those poor folks whose homes flooded. It causes incredible damage and takes months of repair. At least the ducks are happy. Stay dry, my friend.

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  14. We lucked out big time in TO! My heart goes out to the folks whose homes have gotten flooded in the Eastern parts and in Quebec. As you say a messy clean up coming up for them. Hope they get the help they need quickly.

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    • We have been very lucky. Part of it is because our waterfront has developed differently, although I hadn’t considered the danger along the Scarborough Bluffs. Apparently the ground is so saturated that there is increased risk of landslide.

      I was glad to hear this morning that waters have started receding in some of the flood zone.

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      • I agree. Erosion has been a concern in the Bluffs area for a while, right? That has got to be scary!

        It is. Some of the rivers looks really scary!

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  16. So sorry to hear that. Flooding seems to becoming more and more common everywhere lately. Luckily I live on a hill so shouldn’t have any problems with that aspect of the weather. But many houses are built on flood plains here in the UK (why???) so get the brunt of it when the rivers inevitably burst their banks and the water has to go somewhere!

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    • We’re seeing the same thing here too.

      With creeping urbanization, homes have been built on traditional flood plains. If major flooding has occurred only infrequently with decades in between, it is thought the risk is low.

      I’ve been sitting uncomfortably ever since I discovered a few years ago that our neighbourhood was built on a “reclaimed” swamp. Underneath our neighbour’s house there is an underground stream. I always wondered why they had a problem with basement flooding during heavy rains.
      Now whenever we get heavy rains, I’m obsessively checking our basement. That underground stream is too close for comfort.

      Homeowners buy a property without being told the origins of the land before construction began.

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      • We bought a house once that had a ‘dry’ basement. We learned later that doesn’t mean it stays dry! When it flooded slightly after heavy winter rains we discovered that an underground spring was close by, but the houses were all built in the 1880s so I guess surveying wasn’t so great then!

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  17. We had flooding a couple of weeks ago when our river spilled over into the town park. This has been the wettest and coldest “Spring” in a long time. Don’t try to tell me we don’t have climate change. I’m so sorry for all those who will be spending their summer trying to clean up from this mess. Wishing you drier days ahead.

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    • The climate change deniers drive me crazy. It is propagated by those in power with lots of money to protect and defend themselves when the going gets ugly.
      Meanwhile the uninformed continue to give them power to make buckets full of money raping the environment.

      Whew! I’m wearing a little bit of attitude this morning! :/

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  18. How do you spell CLIMATE CHANGE? Wow Incredible flooding. This is our new normal and it is going to get more intense as we move forward. One of the biggest climate change issues = flooding. Everywhere. Some like the Maldives for example, worst case, will be a carastrophy. The only way to deal with this for sirvival, is floating homes.

    There is an award winning Dutch architect who has designed many floating structures. When we had our bamboo low cost housing business in Nicaragua we were working with experts to develop a floating bamboo house that could be made for those communities the world over who experience flooding year after year…each time a bit more..

    Thanks for sharing the Canadian flooding story.

    Peta

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    • Oh Peta – this whole climate change thing makes me crazy.

      I remember David Suzuki, a Canadian environmentalist, warning of the very things we see today back in the 1970s. It terrified me then and continues to terrify me now – wild fires, drought in some areas, flooding in others, extreme powerful storms, melting ice caps, rising waters, warming oceans.
      … and the uninformed continue to give power to the greedy and self-serving who are more interested in making money for themselves than preserving the environment for future generations.

      What happened to your floating bamboo house business? It sounds like an interesting solution to a growing problem.

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  19. I have been very sorry to hear about the terrible flooding in so many places. ‘Weird Weather’ certainly has been very widespread this year. Wishing us all a consistent sunny break soon!

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    • Donna, I used to naively think that those of us in eastern Canada were largely immune to the weird weather phenomenon. We are only peripherally affected by hurricanes, tornadoes, etc. Now of course I’m realizing that none of us are immune.

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  22. Ugh. Wet basements and more.. one of the biggest messes to clean up in a home ever. We’ve been fortunate here, only 2 or 3 major flood events over 30 years, but that’s different for other parts of the state and nearby states — even as I write. I hope it warms up and dries up asap. It’s really unnerving.

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  24. It’s definitely been a warm, wet spring in many parts of the US, too. I can’t imagine having my house flooding and and all the horrible problems that come with that. So sad.

    janet

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  25. I understand. It really is unfortunate. Beach and road especially. Indianapolis had eight days of rain, I forget how many inches. Much of it was the storm and flash flood type. White River/ Fall Creek has flooded out various areas here and there’s a political war over walls. It ain’t pretty.
    On Friday, I took the girls to school and had to turn around because of high water. Specifically, the HIGH WATER signs were floating on the water.
    You’re right about the ducks though. They seemed to be happily swimming around the trees in the back 40. :/

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  26. The rain has been relentless, hadn’t it? Many homes close to the lake here have been impacted from the flooding. Thanks goodness the sun shone today, I had almost forgotten what a blue sky looked like!😲

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    • Bowmanville’s challenges have been on the news a lot. It has to be heart-breaking 😦

      Yesterday the sunshine was glorious! … but bone-chilling cold.
      Helen and I were out on the trail on our bikes with that strong north wind. It was a very rare occurrence, but Helen eventually called for a retreat before we reached our planned turn around point.
      The wind just worn us down. Needless to say, going back was super-easy with that tail wind 🙂

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  29. Wow that’s a lot of water, I’ve been following the news about the weather in Canada. It’s been pretty horrible here in the UK but nothing like you have had.

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  32. What a mess. Glad your fine. Wouldn’t want that much but we could sure use some rain. Bone dry here. Keep your head above water

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  34. I’m so glad you are ok Joanne, and I really feel for everyone whose homes and businesses are affected by the flooding. Your May sounds like our April, and we too have whole communities cleaning up after floods. I’m afraid this will become the new normal 😟

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    • We got tricked into thinking it was going to be a primo spring when Easter was so beautiful.
      … then everything went down the toilet.
      It’s been feeling more like March than May. Brrrr! It is COLD.

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