In Trois-Rives the situation is slowly easing as an ice jam several kilometers long formed on the Saint-Maurice river on Monday. Water levels have fallen but the river will be monitored over the next few days.
• Also read: An ice jam forms on the Saint-Maurice River
Maurice Lebel, who lives in Trois-Rives a few months a year, hasn't seen an ice jam there in over 45 years. On Monday morning he was very surprised to learn that the waters of the Saint-Maurice River were getting closer and closer to his second home.
Mr. Lebel immediately started his pump to remove the few inches of water that had accumulated in his basement. “The gentleman across the street has two feet of water in his basement,” he added.
The houses on the other side of the street were particularly affected by the sudden flooding. The water rose so high that it managed to reverse the flow of a culvert.
The Saint-Maurice Valley Intercommunal Fire Department had to evacuate a couple trapped in their chalet on Monday morning. Since then, the water level has fallen by around one meter. “At the moment I would say that it seems quite stable,” replied the director Alain Beauséjour.
This is largely due to Hydro-Québec reducing water flow from its upstream dams. Although his facilities can only control about 40% of the river, his maneuvers have positive effects.
“Our experts quickly recommended that we reduce what we could reduce from the outflows of the Saint-Maurice River, so about 50% compared to what normally comes from La Tuque. […] Since then, river levels have fallen,” said Pascal Poinlane, spokesman for Hydro-Québec.
The snow expected in large quantities on Wednesday is not a concern for the authorities, at least not for the roads. “It is possible that we will go up a little again. Now there is still some room for maneuver compared to what we experienced yesterday,” added the director of civil security for the Mauricie region, Sylvain Gallant.
According to Hydro-Québec, the normal level of the river at this time of year is around 104 to 105.5 meters. The maximum value reached on Monday evening was 107.8 meters. On Tuesday afternoon, 107 meters were indicated.
Hydrology experts visited the site on Tuesday to study the river's behavior and determine future strategies. The situation will be closely monitored for at least the next few days.