Pierrefonds-Roxboro issues flood crisis guide
The mayor of Pierrefonds-Roxboro is keeping his fingers crossed that residents in his borough will never experience another crisis like the great flood of 2017. But borough Mayor Jim Beis said the level of preparedness for residents will be enhanced by a new guide that contains precautions, pertinent advice and information in the event of another flood from Rivière des Prairies. Beis unveiled the bilingual 24page “Residents’ Guide: In Case of a Flood, Be Prepared!” last Thursday at the borough hall. There are plans to distribute 2,500 copies of the guide to homes in the areas vulnerable to flooding. (The guide can also be viewed online on the borough’s webpage.) Beis and other borough councillors plan to go door-to-door to deliver the guide in the coming weeks. “We’re going to revisit some of the areas and see some of the folks we hadn’t seen for many months, and show them that not only have we done a lot of stuff on the ground … but we’re also looking out for their welfare by providing them with some important information that will help them, and at least put them at ease that we’re doing something for them.” The guide contains a lot of useful information for residents in the event of a flood. It offers recommendations and actions to be taken before a flood, during an evacuation, after returning home and during cleanup operations. Another section explains how residents can develop their own emergency plan and which items to include in a 72-hour emergency kit. The guide also provides a list of resources, including telephone numbers, online services and automated alert message services to stay informed. Beis said providing important contact information should help citizens during a crisis. “A lot of people know these resources exist but they didn’t have the contact information.” The key for residents during that initial 72-hour period is preparedness, said Beis. “I didn’t even know where my candles were at home, but I do now. Once you live through a crisis, you start looking at all this stuff. You start looking at insurance to see if you’re covered for these kinds of things. So this is reminder for folks to situate themselves if there is another crisis.” Beis said the borough is better prepared for a flood on its riverlined territory than it was a year ago. “We purchased 15,000 sand bags. We purchased 4x4x4 industrial bags that we placed already in locations on Fifth Ave., and an area in the west as well as a precaution so that in case there is water that comes up in those areas, at least we won’t have to put out 20,000 bags. We have these walls that are put up with these bags,” Beis said. “When the emergency measures plan is declared, the city ’s responsibility at that point is purely operational. Civil security handles a lot of the rest of the co-ordination. Our role at that point is operations,” he added. “We are overseen by the Croix Rouge, who co-ordinate the big machine. But we do the operations on the grounds. It’s really an orchestra with the maestro being civil security.” Beis said civic officials are closely monitoring water levels. “It’s 1.5 metres lower than it was last year. And the weather, the way it’s been, because it’s gradually thawing, is allowing for the free flow of the river and allowing it to go where it is supposed to and not accumulate in this area. “So we’re optimistic, but we never know,” Beis said.