Across our region, people are watching water levels closely, especially at the mouth of the Nottawasaga River in Wasaga Beach.
“Where the water is cresting over that's where the property line is,” says Judy Bonds.
In the past week, Bonds has watched the Nottawasaga River swell and crest the bank of her property. Bonds fears the water levels will continue to rise and will lead to flooding.
“It's going to take a while for this snow to melt and I think it’s going to keep coming up even further to the edge,” she says.
Water levels along the river are still rising. The Nottawasaga Valley Conservation Authority has already issued a flood watch and that could be upgraded to a flood warning depending on how much more the water rises. A big concern is the Minesing Wetland is now at capacity and water from there will be flowing downstream through towns like Wasaga Beach.
“Now it's full that means we are going to see things (water) move towards Georgian Bay and the flows will be high and the banks will continue to be dangerous,” says the NVCA’s Stephanie Durocher.
Wasaga Beach Fire Chief Michael McWilliam has been closely monitoring water levels. He says the double-digit temperatures and about 20 millimetres of rain in the forecast over the next few days could be a telling sign of flooding.
“The concern is the snow pact that is still remaining that is going to melt over the next few days as we have warmer weather and as you can see the water is already very high,” he says.
Pat Ward has also been watching the river rise by his home and has noticed a drastic change in the past four days.
“We've watched it go up six inches each day,” he says.
Flood watches aren't unusual at this time of year, but Ward’s basement flooded six years ago and he's crossing his fingers it won't happen again.
“We have these for 12 years and only 2008 was the worst year,” he says. “I don't anticipate it coming up too much. The ground is still saturated the water.”
The conservation authority and fire department are asking people in flood-prone areas to keep a close eye on water levels and be prepared to leave their homes if it becomes too dangerous.
