Landslides cause significant damage in Mauricie – Centre-du-Québec, while several large landslides prevented residents from returning to their homes, some for years.
• Also read: Landslide: Emergency evacuation of two 90-year-olds
These disasters are expensive for communities, which spend part of their budgets on prevention and repair.
Almost six months after the great landslide in Pierreville, a second of three owners received good news. The future of the third house in the row of the island remains uncertain.
Work was carried out last December to soften the slopes caused by the landslide. After some additional work, Charles Courchesne was able to return home last Saturday.
“I couldn’t wait to come back! Given the work done, we felt safe. She worried me the first night but no, things were going really well and we got back to normal,” said Mr Courchesne, who vacated his home with the help of relatives and friends last November amid the uncertainty.
The Rang de l’Île has yet to be rebuilt. Work is not expected to begin before winter 2024. Discussions with the municipality about possible options for rebuilding or relocating the road will begin in the spring of this year, the Ministry of Public Security said.
“It remains to be seen if they will do it next year or another year. What is certain is that at some point the path will have priority. There is no bypass, there is nothing,” added Mr Courchesne.
Landslides are not uncommon in the region. In 2016, the residents of Sainte-Geneviève-de-Batiscan were evacuated for three years. To secure the ground, Quebec granted nearly $10 million to the community last May.
“It is a rock fall to stabilize the Batiscan River at one point or the dam and also along the Rivière à Veillet with pinpoint accuracy,” explains the mayor of the municipality, Christian Gendron.
In Quebec, Shawinigan ranks second among cities with the most landslide-prone dwellings with a total of 2,425, and Trois-Rivières sixth with 710 at-risk dwellings, according to data from the Department of Transportation and the Department of Energy Natural Resources.
For such cases, the cities provide amounts in the three-year capital plan. Shawinigan has committed $250,000 per year for proofreading for three years. At Trois-Rivières, $450,000 per year is earmarked for culvert repairs, embankment work and steep slope stabilization.
In Saint-Roch-de-Mékinac, following several landslides on the main road, including last Tuesday evening, the municipality intends to take action to prevent these incidents from happening again.