High water levels on McGregor Creek near Chatham, March 2017. (File photo courtesy of the Lower Thames Valley Conservation Authority)High water levels on McGregor Creek near Chatham, March 2017. (File photo courtesy of the Lower Thames Valley Conservation Authority)
Chatham

Flood Watch Issued After Heavy Rain Overnight

There is a flood watch in effect for Chatham-Kent.

Officials with the Lower Thames Valley Conservation Authority say they issued the alert because the ground was already soaked from the rain over the weekend and then it got hit with even more late Monday night and early Tuesday morning.

The LTVCA says areas in the Lower Thames watershed got anywhere between 15-50 mm during those thunderstorms -- the area south of Chatham got hit the hardest as a whole, with most areas there receiving more than 30 mm of rain.

Smaller watercourses including Indian Creek in Chatham are expected to peak late Tuesday afternoon and could cause some localized flooding issues, but no major flooding is expected.

The McGregor Creek Diversion Channel is also operating to protect residents in south Chatham.

Standing water and slippery banks could still be dangerous, though, so officials with the LTVCA are reminding residents to steer clear of area waterways for now.

The short-term forecast should help those water levels come down a bit -- Environment Canada isn't calling for rain again until Friday night.

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