The Ministry of Natural Resources says a flood warning is place for southern areas of the Sturgeon and Upper Ottawa Watersheds in the North Bay District.
Officials say there is flooding in some areas.
As of Friday, the North Bay-Mattawa Conservation Authority (NBMCA) says a flood warning is in place for the North Bay-Mattawa watershed, a flood watch for the Lake Nipissing Shoreline (Callander and North Bay), with a flood outlook for the Mattawa River downstream of the Hurdman Dam.
They also started operating the Parks Creek Backflood Control structure, located at the Eva Wardlaw Conservation Area at the mouth of Parks Creek on Lake Nipissing along Lakeshore Drive.
Stop logs were added Friday and the internal pump turned on to draw down the creek.
“Two pumps will be installed at the dam on Monday to increase capacity and improve readiness for anticipated rising water levels on Lake Nipissing,” says Angela Mills, NBMCA Flood Duty Officer. “The Parks Creek Backflood Control structure plays a critical role in preventing flooding along Parks Creek, which can impact approximately 500 homes in the surrounding area.”
The Municipality of West Nipissing declared a state of emergency on the weekend with several roads closed because of flooding and washouts.
They include Highway 64 between Sturgeon Falls and Marten River, Desjardins Street, Leduc Road and Ashburton Road in Field, Kipling West Road in Kipling and Lapointe Road in Crystal Falls.
The municipality also says a limited supply of sandbags is available at the Verner and Field fire halls for households in urgent need of protecting their homes from flooding.
Meantime, as the potential for flooding along the Lake Nipissing shoreline increases, the City of North Bay has sand and sandbags available at filling stations at Sunset Park and Champlain Park.
A filling station is already operating at Public Works on Franklin Street.
The City says it is closely monitoring conditions.
In Chisholm, the township said on Sunday the State of Emergency remains in place.
For everyone’s safety, officials ask residents to stay off any roads that are under water, noting driving through flooded areas further damages road surfaces, it delays repairs and increases costs.
They add crews will be working on road repairs as the water recedes.
The Town of Mattawa’s Emergency Control Group is meeting again Monday as they continue to monitor conditions.
They said when the Northwestern Quebec region is in full freshet season and the Lake Timiskaming Reservoir reaches capacity, the Ottawa River will likely rise.
On Friday, officials said sand and sandbags have been delivered to the Mike Rodden Arena for those wishing to fill bags in the arena parking lot.
