Fields flooded by the rising Thames River in Thamesville, February 23, 2018. (Photo courtesy of the Chatham-Kent Police Service)Fields flooded by the rising Thames River in Thamesville, February 23, 2018. (Photo courtesy of the Chatham-Kent Police Service)
Chatham

One year since CK Flood 2018

It has been exactly one year since flooding along the Thames River prompted a State of Emergency for areas in Chatham-Kent.

The February 23, 2018 flood caused many people in East Kent to leave their homes and businesses behind for a few days. The flooding from Thamesville eventually trickled down the river, which caused flooding in Chatham. However, communities across Southwestern Ontario also experienced flooding that left many with damaged property.

Bob Crawford, chief of fire and emergency services, said there were definitely lessons learned during the 2018 flood event that has proven to be useful moving forward.

Chatham-Kent fire and emergency crews rescue a family of five from their flooded home in Chatham. February 24, 2018. (Photo courtesy of Chatham-Kent Fire and Emergency Services) Chatham-Kent fire and emergency crews rescue a family of five from their flooded home in Chatham. February 24, 2018. (Photo courtesy of Chatham-Kent Fire and Emergency Services)

Crawford also mentioned that having support from council has been key. During the 2019 budget, council members understood the need to replace some equipment that had been damaged during the 2018 flood.

"A dive team becomes extremely important when we're moving people through waist-deep water," he said. "To go out and practice the way we do and make sure that we work as a team so that when the day comes and we need to call upon those team members... they're ready to work together."

Another key element that has helped in dealing with situations such as a flood is the joint efforts put forward by different departments within the municipality.

"We work well together, this is an organization where the fire department, Public Works, and the Lower Thames Valley Conservation Authority all come together to make sure that we can predict with some degree of certainty what's about to happen and then take measures to mitigate the effects of it," said Crawford.

Those measures were put to the test recently when a localized State of Emergency was issued in the Tilbury area. Ice jams and damage to some of the dikes in the river caused flooding concerns for some residents. However, Crawford had previously said it was not to the same degree of the 2018 flood.

"We've gotten very practiced at this and the community has a high degree of resilience," he said. "Of course the recovery period can be difficult with people having water in their homes or in their basements but for the most part, people in Chatham-Kent are very good at recovering and getting things back to normal."

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