SUDBURY -- Update:
MR55 between Koti Road and Bruno Street has reopened Wednesday morning following flooding due to a suspected beaver dam break.
Original:
While many areas across the region woke up to wet conditions on Tuesday, some people who live in Naughton needed more than just their umbrellas.
“I was just a little bit shocked, like last year we had a small flood and you know, there was a bit of water but this, this is a crazy amount and it wasn’t stopping,” said property owner Phillip Beauchamp. “It just keep going and keep going and I was like ‘oh my goodness, when's it going to stop?’ It took about an hour, hour and a half of just rising slowly and slowly and then eventually it just stopped.”
Municipal Road 55 remains close to traffic in the area due to what officials believe is a beaver dam break. The roadway will be closed at least until Wednesday morning, the city said.
However, the flood didn’t just affect the roadway. A handful of houses were also battling the water.
“Around 8:30-8:45 I first noticed it, by 9:15-9:30 I think it had reached kind of the max maybe by 10ish and now it’s starting to go down,” said Beauchamp. “The house is up high enough so it hasn’t affected the house at all, but my entire yard is under water.”
Other neighbours weren’t as lucky. One women who didn’t want to be interviewed was dealing with a flooded basement.
Officials with Greater Sudbury said crews are monitoring the situation, but it could be a while until the road reopens.
“The water has gone down significantly but we are still monitoring it, it is still quite high in the ditches particularly,” said Brittany Hallam. “We need to assess the structural integrity of the roadway after that water goes down to ensure that it’s safe for motorists.”
Hallam said the water levels are going down quicker than expected, but the city’s assessment people likely won't be able to go in until Wednesday morning.
Crews will be on hand throughout Tuesday night making sure motorists stay off the road until it can be deemed safe again. She said a resurfacing project last year replaced two cross culverts going across MR 55, which probably helped drainage.
“Unfortunately in this instance, we are limited by two things" she said. "One is that the surge of water coming from the north was bigger than expected, like I mentioned earlier, probably due to a beaver damn letting go so that’s not normally designed for. And also we’re limited by the downstream capacity of the storm system, which actually wasn’t upgraded last year.”
The city said its social media will be updated regularly so that motorists will know when everything is open again.
