Officials remain vigilant along the shore of the Thames as water levels continue to drop in Chatham-Kent, though the problematic ice jam remains an issue.
Despite the state of emergency remaining in effect as of Sunday morning, water levels have slowly been subsiding.
Tim Dick, director of drainage for Chatham-Kent, told Blackburn News that as of Sunday morning, all dike repairs are holding.
However, the ice jam remains at the mouth of the river near Lighthouse Cove. Open water in front of it started to freeze overnight, meaning the ice may not be moving on its own anytime soon.
On Saturday, Chatham-Kent Mayor Darrin Canniff posted a video on his official Facebook page, saying that with no additional rain in the forecast, conditions are ideal for the water to continue receding.
"Today, we're happy that we have an update that the water levels have come down," said Canniff. "Some of the ice is starting to break up near the mouth of the river. It's still blocked up here, but it's still good news that we're moving in the right direction."
Officials with the Lower Thames Valley Conservation Authority said that by Sunday morning, water levels had dropped about 1.5 feet at Prarie Siding Bridge.
https://twitter.com/Jason_Homewood/status/1094489144666087424
Conditions have improved in the area of Poppe Rd., where some flooding had occurred. Canniff spoke to a resident identified in the video as Betsy, who lives with her husband about 50 feet from the Poppe Rd dike.
"Everybody that's been up and down, it's been nonstop. The support has been phenomenal," said Betsy. "We've never had that anytime we've had an issue with flooding before. It's just amazing."
Water levels are still high enough to cause some stress to the dike system, according to the municipality's Saturday evening update. Throughout the weekend, repairs were made in four areas concerning seepage at the base of the dikes.
Dick is reminding residents that slight water seepage through the dikes is normal and they should not be overly alarmed with any seepage. He adds that contractors remain on site to monitor the repairs.
Conditions may change at any time, and Chatham-Kent is leaving the state of emergency in place until they can confirm that the situation is entirely stable.
The main municipality phone number, (519) 360-1998, will continue to be staffed.
Keep following BlackburnNews.com for the latest updates regarding the ice jam situation.