Overstroming van de St. John rivier dwingt mensen te vluchten uit hun huizen in Maine, New Brunswick


_{Bron: abc}

Mensen verlaten hun huizen en bedrijven aan beide kanten van de Amerikaanse-Canadese grens in het meest noordelijke gedeelte van Maine. Dit gebied wordt sinds woensdag bedreigd door de ergste overstromingen ooit.

Minstens 3 inches regen binnen 24 uur gecombineerd met de enorme hoeveelheid smeltende sneeuw, die gedurende de ergste winter in de geschiedenis is gevallen, zorgen ervoor dat de St. John River is gestegen tot 8,8 meter — meer dan bijna een meter boven het overstromingspunt — en jaagt het water de hoofdstraat in.

Er wordt verwacht, dat de rivier donderdag een hoogte zal bereiken van 9,4 meter, 1,2 meter hoger dan het vorige record van 1979, meldde Joseph Hewitt van the National Weather Service. Verder stroomafwaarts in New Brunswick hebben honderden mensen hun huizen verlaten.

_{Bron: onweer-online.nl} | Gewijzigd: 1 mei 2008, 16:42 uur, door Marga

Farms and homes are surrounded by floodwater in the community of Sheffield, New Brunswick, May 1, 2008.


Homes are surrounded by floodwater in the community of Sheffield, New Brunswick May 1, 2008.


Floodwater surrounds a neighbourhood in the north end Fredericton, New Brunswick May 1, 2008.


A view of flooded farms and homes in the Sheffield area of New Brunswick May 1, 2008.


Water from the swollen St. John River rushes down the Mactaquac hydroelectric dam near Fredericton, New Brunswick, May 1, 2008.


Aaron Alexander-Stairs (13), left, and Robie McGibbon (11) use a canoe to make their way through the flood waters of the St. John River along University Avenue on Thursday, May 1, 2008 in Fredericton, NB.

_{Bron: Calgary Herald}

Overstroming in deel VS en Canada

Grote neerslaghoeveelheden en smeltende sneeuw hebben voor overstromingen in het noordoosten van de VS en het oosten van Canada gezorgd. Woensdag zijn er meer dan 100 huizen en bedrijven in Maine geëvacueerd toen de St. John River overstroomde.

De hevige regen en de smeltende sneeuw hebben de St. John River doen overstromen. Er is meer dan 7.5 cm regen gevallen, en het waterpeil is naar meer dan 9 meter gestegen. Dit is 1.6 m boven de vloedgrens van de rivier. Het vorige record was een waterpeil van 8 meter in 1979.

Er ligt nog steeds 23 cm sneeuw. Als deze sneeuw gaat smelten wordt de situatie alleen maar verergerd. Ook in Canada worden 1300 huizen bedreigd door overstromingen al gevolg van smeltende sneeuw en regenval. Met name in Fredericton en New Brunswick.

Het kleine stadje St-Andre-Avellinin in Quebec was bijna helemaal onder water gelopen na de overstroming van de nabijgelegen rivier. Volgens experts is de waterpeil in de afgelopen 100 jaar niet hoger gekomen als nu.

_{©Weeronline}

Evacuations, road closures continue as flood waters rise in southern N.B.

The worst of the flooding of the St. John River is over in parts of New Brunswick, but emergency personnel continue to keep a close eye on communities along the southern part of the river basin.

About 150 households in Saint John have been affected by the flood waters, said Nancy Moar, spokeswoman for the Emergency Measures Organization in the city.

Almost 35 roads in the Saint John area remained closed on Monday morning because of the flood waters.

Darlings Island, near Hampton, also remains cut off from the mainland because of the flood waters, and residents are able to cross only by a boat service offered by the Department of Natural Resources.

The water is expected to crest in the Saint John area at 5.2 metres on Monday before beginning to recede on Tuesday.

The drainage of the water will be a slow process in the area that is impacted by the high tides of the Bay of Fundy, which acts like a dam, said Andy Morton, deputy director of the EMO.

People seem fascinated with the flood waters and are flocking towards the waters, Moar said. Officials are asking that people not go near the flooded river.

"We are really stressing the fact that they stay away from the flood-affected areas," she said.
Basements, yards flooded

Grand Bay-Westfield resident Claudine Snow said the water is the highest she's seen in the 11 years she's lived in the area.

Debbie Fowler, a resident of the same community, says her basement has filled with 16 centimetres of water and now smells like a sewer.

"It smells really bad," Fowler said. "I believe it might be sewer because there is a pumping station at the end of the street and they said it might be overflowing. So I believe that's what's in my house now."

Fowler said she expects to have to pull up her carpet and may even have to tear down some of the Gyproc walls.

"It's disheartening because it's going to cost a lot of money to fix it up," she said.

Fowler added she isn't sure her flooded yard will fare much better.

"The greenhouse, for sure we'll lose that," she said. "The boys' camp maybe completely rotted, the fencing, the tin shed … the decking, I just don't know."

Kim McCurdy and her husband have set up their motor home in a friend's driveway after their Grand Bay-Westfield street was evacuated after its power was cut.

"This is going to be a huge mess," McCurdy said.

McCurdy said she expects to be out of her home for at least a week and can currently access the property only by kayak.
Waters receding in parts of province

Almost 370 people across the province are still without power and about 70 sections of road are still underwater.

The 673-kilometre St. John River stretches from its headwaters in Maine to the port city of Saint John, draining 55,000 square kilometres of land.

The flooding began with the spring snow melt but was compounded when 100 millimetres of rain fell in the northern part of the province, southern Quebec and Maine that funnelled into the St. John River.

The river crested at 8.33 metres in Fredericton, shy of the historic high of 8.63 metres set in 1973.

At the peak of the flood more than 800 people had registered with the Red Cross as having to evacuate their homes. Many more left their flooded properties but depended on the help of family and friends, Premier Shawn Graham told CBC News Monday.

The province is offering a financial aid package to flood victims, and will begin taking calls on Monday. The call centre can be reached at 1-888-298-8555.

Deductibles are $1,000 for individual residential claims and $5,000 for small business owners.

Free water testing, electrical assessments and pickup of debris will also be included in the package, Graham said.

"This is going to be a very stressful time for the next two to three weeks, longer in some parts of the province," said the premier.

Though the river is receding in some parts of New Brunswick, the province is still in response mode, he said.

It was raining throughout parts of the province on Monday morning. But the EMO's Morton said that though the weather is being closely monitored it is not expected to have a large impact on the water levels.

Emergency Measures is forecasting the following water levels:

* In Fredericton, the water level is expected to recede to seven metres by Tuesday. Flood stage is 6.5 metres.
* In Maugerville, the water level is expected to recede to 6.2 metres by Tuesday. Flood stage is six metres.
* In Jemseg, the water level is expected to recede to 5.7 metres by Tuesday. Flood stage is 4.3 metres.
* In Grand Lake, the water level is expected to increase to 5.9 metres by Tuesday. Flood stage is five metres.
* In Sheffield-Lakeville Corner, the water level is expected to recede to six metres by Tuesday. Flood stage is 4.8 metres.
* In Oak Point, the water level is expected to reach 5.3 metres by Tuesday. Flood stage is 4.7 metres.
* In Quispamsis and Saint John, the water level is expected to be 5.1 metres by Tuesday. Flood stage is 4.2 metres.

_{Bron: CBC News}