Sunday’s rain devastated the Boulevard des Estacades in Trois-Rivières. While the thunderstorms from ten days ago had begun their work, the recent accumulation of water was the final blow. The crevasse that formed on the banks of the Saint-Maurice river has grown considerably.
A full lane, half of the second and median collapsed towards the river.
“We saw the road sink in the middle. The lamppost sank and the heavy equipment that was left here for the renovation work also sank into the street,” described Alexandre Labrecque, immediate neighbor of the landslide.
He too had to leave his house in the afternoon and returned later that evening.
Traffic between Ogden and Pie Xll Streets is now completely banned.
On site, TVA Nouvelles met a site manager who lives in the area and monitored the progress of the work. He came to the following conclusion: the flow of water from the creek crossing the streets had to be interrupted during the excavation work and the water had to be pumped out of the fissure. But with the rain that fell, the pressure was too much and the water buildup washed it all away.
According to neighbors, the area had been unstable for several years.
“We could see that it had started digging. We know that work has already been done in the last year, but it may not have been enough, shall we say,” added a neighbor we met.
Could this slide have been avoided? After all, the fragility of the soil had already been addressed in 2020.
“Work on Boulevard des Estacades has been included in our three-year capital plan since 2020. We had planned work there. What you need to know is that the pipe, the pipe that is in the ground, had no movement,” explained the mayor of Trois-Rivières, Jean Lamarche.
After a $102,000 emergency ground stabilization contract was awarded last week, more extensive work is scheduled to begin tomorrow. Your cost will be determined later.
The mayor hopes traffic will resume on the east side of the boulevard by midweek. Traffic was restored in both directions by Friday.
The Council must then vote to find the best long-term solution.