Water, water everywhere … especially on the shoreline
It’s costing the city $100,000 a week to protect rain-soaked islands
If you’re beginning to think Toronto will never dry out, you’re not alone.
One week after officials announced that Lake Ontario was at or near peak levels, waters continue to surge in some areas and much of the city’s shoreline remains compromised, including Rouge Beach, Bluffers Park, Toronto Islands, Harbourfront and Sunnyside.
Ponds of water bloom when it rains, including on Lake Shore Blvd., disrupting traffic.
“Peak flooding? It’s way past peak flooding,” says Michael Rivest, walking his dog Pogo at the foot of the Scarborough Bluffs in Thursday’s rain.
“This is nuts,” says Rivest, pointing to a park bench. “That bench? Last week you could see the feet, but not this week. It’s gone up at least a foot.”
Blame Mother Nature. The spring rains just won’t quit and winds are creating surges along the shoreline.
Toronto has been experiencing elevated rainfall since March, when 54.2 millimetres fell — the average for the month is 32.6 millimetres, according to Environment Canada meteorologist Gerald Cheng.
Rainfall in April and May was similarly elevated and June is shaping up to be a banner month for rain, with 52.8 millimetres recorded less than halfway though a month that typically sees 71.5 millimetres in all.
The localized rain is increasing water damage, flooding and ponding, says waterfront parks manager James Dann.
Damage done by flooding in 2017 and a furious storm in 2018 have also weakened natural and man-made defences along the shoreline — trees were uprooted and large rocks meant to prevent erosion from waves were moved by flooding or lost entirely, leaving some areas less resilient.
It’s costing the city $100,000 a week to keep water from swamping the Toronto Islands. Residents are responsible for their own dwellings, but the city maintains the island parks, which draw a million visitors between May and September every year, Dann says.
Even under water, the islands attract visitors, so-called “flood tourists.”
Some areas of the road between Ward’s Island and Hanlan’s Point remain under as much as 45 centimetres of water.
Ferries to Hanlan’s remain suspended.
Centre Island, where the Centreville Amusement Park is located, remains dry, Dann says.
Algonquin Island resident Lynn Cunningham left her home Thursday morning and her walkway was dry, but after a rainy day she came home to find her walk and front lawn flooded.
There is nowhere for the rain to drain to — the earth is already soggy and Lake Ontario is being held at bay by sandbags and pumps.
“Because of the rain, it’s worse,” Cunningham says, before being called away for sandbag duty.
“The street wasn’t flooding when I left this morning and now it’s flooding.
“I didn’t expect it to rise quite like that.”
Elsewhere in the city, the Rouge Beach parking lot is under water.
Areas of Bluffers Park are submerged.
Damage along some of the pedestrian paths was severe and added to the damage of the 2017 flood, not all of which has been repaired.
The lower part of Logan Ave., at Lake Shore Blvd. E., was under water Thursday and the southmost lane of Lake Shore Blvd. W. had to be closed in front of Ontario Place, a recurring problem.
Inland ponding — when large ponds of water form, as has happened at Woodbine Beach — continues, says Dann, although the city is bringing in an industrial pump to get Woodbine Beach clear for Canada Day.
Areas of the boardwalk near Harbour Square Park next to the ferry docks remain under water and farther west along the lakefront, parts of the wave decks are under water and so is part of the Toronto Music Garden.
The western beaches are littered with logs and debris that were washed down the Humber River, Dann says.
As the city cleans up, some walkways may need to be rerouted — Dann says the boardwalk south of the Sunnyside Pavilion, for example, may have to be moved to the north side.
“You can’t just rebuild it the way it was. You have to look at it in the light of planning for longterm resiliency. We can’t just assume it is an isolated thing,” Dann says.
Ashoreline hazard warning issued June 7 by the Toronto and Region Conservation Authority (TRCA) remains in effect.
“An annual sandbagging effort is not the solution,” says Coun. Joe Cressy (Ward 10 Spadina— Fort York).
“The fact of the matter is our climate has changed, but the location of our neighbourhoods has not.
“Neighbourhoods in Toronto are experiencing the impact of accelerated climate change.”
The high water levels make the lake especially susceptible to wind, waves and something called the seiche effect — which is like water sloshing back and forth in a pool.
“It can happen within the whole lake, between Toronto and Rochester and sometimes it happens on a micro-scale, between downtown and the islands,” says Rehana Rajabali, senior manager of flood risk management at TRCA.
Surges are likely responsible for higher water levels along parts of the shoreline and rain is creating ponding on city streets and beaches and parks as it falls on surfaces that can’t absorb any more water.
While the lake level is pretty much within the forecast range, it’s staying at the higher end of things, says Rajabali, adding sunnier days would help evaporate the water.
“We definitely need some sunshine,” she said.