Flooding Delays Boating Season in Quebec’s Richelieu Valley

Yves Paquette, General Manger at the Association Maritime du Quebec, (AMQ) sounded hopeful when Boating Industry Canada contacted him for an update on the marinas affected by the unusual spring weather.

“While the records were broken on the May 6th weekend, and continued rain and winds are still with us now, the good news is that things should start to get better over the next two weeks,” he told Boating Industry Canada.

“Perhaps 10 to 12 marinas are affected and the St – Paul – de – IÎe – aux – Noix area is very important with many significant marine dealers located in the area; Marina Gosselin is flooded, so is Marina Fortin and Groupe Performance Marine’s dealership has been open although their marina still is not and for weeks, people have not been able to reach their boats to work on them. Luckily, all the boats were secured as the rains came and the water levels increased so I do not think we have had significant losses that way,” Paquette told us, “But, there has been terrible flooding and many people’s homes have been damaged. Some will have to be relocated to higher ground, even through this is the worst flooding in 150 years.”

According to the Montreal Gazette, more than 3,000 homes have been flooded and 1,000 people forced from their houses in the worst flooding to hit the Richelieu Valley, roughly 40 kilometres southeast of Montreal, in 150 years.

Forecasts of more high winds in the coming days means the water levels may rise yet again and early Monday, the Richelieu River continued to inch upward. The Gazette reported that as of 5 a.m. Monday, the water levels along the river were still going up, although the increase was minimal compared to the jump in levels seen over the weekend.

Hydro Météo, the agency that tracks water levels in the province, warned that the flood waters could rise another two to four centimetres before the end of Monday as winds from the south will mean more water will be pushed into the river from Lake Champlain on Tuesday. The agency predicted that levels could go up another three to six centimetres as a result.

Yves Paquette described the extent of the flooding, noting that “Lake Champlain to St. Jean is flooded on both sides and Missisiquoi is reported to be 4’ to 5’ under water, depending on the area.”