Calgary flood season in full swing
Flood season has hit Calgary once again, already causing a stir amongst residents.
The City of Calgary has seen an increase in 311 Citizen Service calls to complain about flooding streets and ice ruts from frozen stormwater drains. Flooding is common in the area at this time of year, as the result of warmer temperatures causing the heavy snow to melt, and an increase in precipitation.
“The warmer atmosphere can carry more precipitation,” Bob Sandford, Water Security Research Chair at the United Nations University Institute for Water, Environment and Health told the Calgary Herald. “We tend to get very heavy snowfall during March and sometimes well into April. Occasionally, you get a good storm in May, too. But it’s how warm and how fast the warming occurs that will determine the flooding hazard here. If a spring is slow and the temperature is just above freezing, that snow disappears gradually.”
However, the flooding has caused unrest for some locals who say that the city isn’t responding fast enough to their concerns. Speaking to CBC, Chelsea Chester, a resident of Coventry Hills, said she hasn’t been able to move her car for a week due to the influx in water: “It’s been a complete nightmare getting in and out. Nobody can even park in the area.”
The backup comes as the result of the cities triiage priority ranking system for ranking 311 calls, according to city's head of wastewater and snow water collection, Corey Colbran. It can take up to ine month to respond to non-emergency calls. In many cases, nature runs its course before help is on hand.
"There needs to be an understanding that each day we're getting potentially 300 calls or more," Colbran told CBC.
This isn’t the first time flood season has rocked the city. Back in 2013 intense flooding caused many locals to reassess how much security they had if their homes were damaged as a result of the Bow and Elbow Rivers flowing over their banks. One key things to remember is that many homeowners’ policies do not include coverage for damage caused by a flood, simply because the resulting damage can be too expensive. Often damage caused by natural flooding and sewer back-up caused in part by flooding is covered only as part of an add-on to your policy. If you live in a flood-prone area you should consider investing in additional flood protection.