Rain could push St. John River levels near 8.3 metres, Fredericton EMO says

Fredericton Mayor Mike O'Brien asked residents to respect the traffic measures in place because of the flood

CBC News · Posted: Apr 30, 2018 6:54 AM AT | Last Updated: 3 hours ago

As rain drenches the New Brunswick capital, the rise in the St. John River could rival the 8.3 metres reached during the major 2008 flood, an emergency official says.

River levels had been stable at about eight metres, but the rainfall  Monday is threatening to push the river to 8.3 metres, Wayne Tallon, the director of Fredericton's Emergency Measures Organization.

Tallon said his organization tries to anticipate water levels as best it can, but the rapid rise of the river late last week caught it off guard.

Flooding forces widespread road and office closures in Fredericton area
Road closures continue on Day 3 of St. John River floods
"We didn't anticipate the waters to rise that quickly," he said.

"I could literally see the water come up into that parking lot [from City Hall]."

He said he thinks the quick change in weather as well as heavy rains contributed to the rapid flooding.

"We really never had a spring," he said. "We went from winter to summer in 48 hours.

"It just surprised everybody."

'We'll get through this'

Fredericton Mayor Mike O'Brien asked residents to be patient and respect the traffic measures in place.

He said the city is not near the point of having to declare a state of emergency but noted the situation will likely stay the same for the rest of the week.

"We'll get through this … and hopefully at the end of this we can all meet downtown and have a pop," O'Brien said on Information Morning Fredericton on Monday.

Two shelters have been set up in Fredericton for people displaced by flooding and who have no access to temporary accommodations.

Fredericton residents can use the shelter at the Salvation Army on St. Mary's Street, and people from outlying areas can use a shelter on the UNB campus at 20 Bailey Drive.

River rising south of capital

Although water levels could hold at about eight metres in the Fredericton area, communities south of the city could experience rising water levels over the next 48 hours, said Geoffrey Downey  a spokesperson for the Department of Justice and Public Safety.

These include Maugerville, Sheffield and Jemseg by the St. John River, as well as Quispamsis, on the Kennebecasis River, he said.

People, animals scramble for safe ground as waters rise in Maugerville, N.B.
Flood risk in N.B. moving downstream with river levels expected to rise for next 48 hours
But he cautioned that water levels are on the rise across the province, so anyone living on the river system needs to be prepared.

"This is a dynamic situation and things can change," he said.

Better modelling needed

Both Tallon and O'Brien said that the city plans to talk to provincial partners about why their modelling didn't predict the rapid rising floodwaters.

"Obviously, the modelling that has worked very well and accurately over the years, couldn't keep up with it," Tallon said.

"I'm not dissatisfied, but we're working with technology that is not giving us the right information and the right time."

Flooding forces widespread road and office closures in Fredericton area

Flooding forces widespread road and office closures in Fredericton area

City encouraging residents to leave cars at home as more than 40 roads and streets remain closed

CBC News · Posted: Apr 30, 2018 12:48 PM AT | Last Updated: an hour ago

Flooding has caused widespread road closures and traffic delays across Fredericton, prompting the city to ask residents to leave their cars at home if they can. (Gary Moore/CBC )

Closures and traffic delays piled up in the Fredericton area Monday morning as the banks of the St. John River continued to spill its banks.

Provincial government offices in downtown Fredericton are closed Monday to help ease constraints on parking and traffic created by the flooding.

The Fredericton courthouse is also closed. All scheduled court matters are being heard at the Burton courthouse.

In addition, the Fredericton Public Library and New Brunswick College of Craft and Design are also closed.

Rain could push St. John River levels near 8.3 metres, Fredericton EMO says

Meanwhile, about 40 roads and streets remain closed throughout Fredericton.

Drivers are asked to avoid Lincoln Road, Waterloo Row, Union Street east of Gibson, Riverside Drive and Lower St. Mary's.

John Lewis, the city's traffic engineer, said the combination of road closures and parking lots being flooded has made commutes very difficult.

Only two city-owned parking lots are ope: Frederick Square and the east end parking garage.

Fredericton is down by more than 800 parking space in total, according to a news release from city hall.

"This is one of the more challenging transportation issues that we've had to deal with for quite some time," Lewis said.

As a result, the city was encouraging people to walk or bike to work or find other alternate ways of getting to the office.

More road closures affected by floodwaters across New Brunswick
City buses are free, and the city has also set up park-and-ride shuttle services on the city's north and south sides.

Shuttles will run continuous service from 6:30 a.m. to 9:30 a.m, and again from 3:30 p.m. to 7 p.m., from these locations:

Brookside Mall — pickup, drop-off location at Queen and Westmorland streets.
Willie O'Ree — pickup, drop-off location at Queen and Westmorland streets.
Grant Harvey Centre — pickup, drop-off location York and Brunswick streets (Brunswick Street Baptist Church).
Regent Mall (former Sears location) — pickup, drop-off location York and Brunswick streets (Brunswick Street Baptist Church).
School closures

The flooding led the Anglophone West School District to cancel some schools Monday and to cancel busing in some areas.

George Street Middle School in Fredericton and Barker's Point Elementary School will be closed on Monday.

Bus changes include:

Busing in the Rusagonis area will be cancelled (buses 378, 376, 345, 345, 344, 380, 385).
Busing in the Maugerville area will be cancelled (buses 238 and 253).
Busing for Connaught Street School will be cancelled (bus 201).
Buses 14, 15 and 17 in the Perth-Andover area will be cancelled.
Busing for grades K to 8 students in the Hoyt and Central Blissville areas will be cancelled.
Busing for grades 9 to 12 students in the Fredericton Junction and Tracy areas will be cancelled.
In all other local areas impacted by flooding and road closures, buses will service up to the road closed. signs/barriers. The district says if students can meet their bus at these locations, transportation will be. provided. Where buses are not running, transportation will be the parent's responsibility.