The president of the Whiteshell Cottagers Association says water levels look quite manageable so far this year.
Ian Baragar says they are keeping close watch of the situation, but they don’t think flooding will be a big issue.
“We have an advisory to keep an eye on things but the snow and the water levels are all good so there is not a high risk. There is always a little bit of flooding in the spring but nothing like last year. So, touch wood, we are okay still and monitoring.”
That said, Baragar notes water levels do vary from lake to lake and the spring melt is still underway.
“A lot of the ice is just starting to come out and there is a lot of snow but nothing that is out of the ordinary. We are still holding by the forecast that we get from the province which is a low risk of flooding. Again, things can ‘change like the weather’ if rain comes in, so it needs to be monitored.”
There are a couple of trouble spots being reported. As an example, photos have been shared showing water on PTH 307, but Baragar says that situation is not particularly worrisome.
“This one is probably just a culvert that is frozen. When the culvert freezes, the water, until that thaws out, overflows onto the road and into the lake but this is not the flooding caused by the lake. We keep an eye out, but a far cry from the flooding that we saw last year.”
