It’s been a tale of two springs in Saskatchewan. Some areas are so dry local fire departments are reminding residents not to have fires while other areas of the province are dealing with significant flooding.
Conditions are particularly dry in the Vanscoy, Meadow Lake, Mariposa, Eagle Creek, and Battle River areas prompting municipalities to declare fire bans. It’s the opposite problem in the Quill Lake and Clair areas where flooding has caused significant damage to farms and rural roads.
“I’ve never seen water flood like this in this area, ever. If you’re close to a creek, that’s where the biggest problem is because the creek just can’t keep up,” explained farmer Dean Sawchuk of Clair, SK.
Sawchuk’s son has a farm nearby and he has suffered significant damage to their home and yard.
“I’d say he’s got about 2.5 feet of water in his entire yard,” Sawchuk estimated. “The basement has filled up with water, so it’s right to the main floor and with corrals in the yard, it’s just not good.”
Sawchuk says several neighbours and friends came over to help his son clean out the house and the yard and is very thankful for the help. As for the cattle, the Sawchuks were able to to get the majority of them to high ground, however some animals remain in the corrals because the water has prevented them from getting to them.
“We’ve just been feeding them square bales in the meantime to keep them going, hoping the water will recede enough to get them out of there,” Sawchuck said.
Significant snowfall in the winter and early spring has lead to a fast run-off creating overland flooding that hasn’t been this bad in decades.
“I talked to another neighbour yesterday and he said back in ’54 there was some flooding back then but that was the last time anything like this happened,” remarked Sawchuk.
According to the Water Security Agency in Saskatchewan, the Quill Lake basin inflow volumes are at about 1 in 50 year levels while flows in the RM of Connaught, south of Nipawin, are estimated to be at a 1 in 200 year level.
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