Portage la Prairie and area saw heavy rainfall Wednesday night into Thursday, leaving streets flooded and water levels rising across the city.
City officials report that the storm dumped between 90 and 100 millimetres of rain, with some areas seeing slightly higher or lower amounts.
Several areas of Portage experienced flooding following the intense storm.
Paul Ziesmann, Superintendent of Public Works, notes that the city’s drainage systems were pushed to their limits with the heavy rainfall over a short period.
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“We did have a number of staff in... working through the evening, working through historical areas. We did have a few flooding issues in and around the 8th, 9th, and 10th streets northwest. We did see our Saskatchewan Avenue fill up with rain for a short period of time with water, but it did recede and drain away,” he says.
He adds that many of the flooding issues were in areas historically prone to water buildup.
“A lot of the issues that we did face were from some historical areas of concern, but we were able to have staff in working through some of those issues throughout the evening.”
Crescent Lake water levels rise
The storm also affected Crescent Lake, where water levels rose noticeably.
Ziesmann mentions, “Just speaking to the weed harvester group that is in town right now working on some of the weeds in our wonderful lake, they’ve seen about a six-inch rise in the water level from what they were facing yesterday (Wednesday).”
Despite the storm, the city’s tree canopy held up well.
“During this rain event, we actually did not receive a lot of tree calls. Our canopy has stood up to the rain pretty well,” added Ziesmann.
City officials report the sewer system has largely withstood the heavy rain, though a few issues have arisen since the storm.
Ziesmann notes, “We didn’t receive too many last night regarding sewer issues, but there are a few that we’ve been receiving today.”
City response and cleanup
Following the storm, the focus shifts to cleanup efforts.
“Generally, the days afterwards are a lot of cleanup. There could be some trees, maybe some path cleanup, some mulch cleanups, those types of things. That’s really what our staff will be focusing on in the next couple days to really try to clean up the city.”
- with files from Maryssa McFadden
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