A powerful storm that moved south of Manitoba earlier this week destroyed part of a dike that protects a residential area near Gimli from high water on Lake Winnipeg.
Entire sections of the wooden dike along Willow Island Lake were shattered by the action of the waves on Tuesday, when strong northerly winds raised the water level in the southern basin of Lake Winnipeg by about two. feet.
“It was brutal. There were so many waves and wind,” said Carol McDonell, who was alone at home on Willow Island when the storm caused heavy waves. They felled several trees in front of the property’s lake and cleared more than a meter of shoreline that was not protected by a dike.
McDonell said he also saw an entire deck pass through another house after the waves discovered it from the shores of Willow Island, which plunges into Lake Winnipeg southeast of Gimli.
“I was trying to keep my dog calm. I was trying not to panic, and I was sitting here watching him. Never again,” he said.
Carol McDonell said she does not want to experience another storm like the one that hit Willow Island on Tuesday. (Darin Morash / CBC)
Prior to the storm, Lake Winnipeg was sitting at 715.6 feet above sea level, which is above its recommended operating range.
The lake has swelled due to strong inflows from both the Winnipeg River, which is experiencing its largest flood ever recorded, and the Red River, which reached its sixth highest volume since maintenance began. of records.
Lake Winnipeg is now at 715.8 feet above sea level and is expected to continue to rise until mid-July, when Manitoba Hydro is projected to reach 716.8 feet.
This is very close to the crest of the lake in 2011, when a flood of one every 300 years on the Assiniboine River caused strong inflows into Lake Winnipeg.
Whenever Lake Winnipeg exceeds 715 feet, Manitoba Hydro must drain as much water as possible out of the lake through Jenpeg Operations Station and the Nelson River.
Hydro spokesman Bruce Owen said the output at Jenpeg on Thursday was 120,000 cubic feet per second, the highest possible discharge at the station.
Lake Winnipeg is still rising, however, because the combined flows of all the rivers that flow into it remain high. The Winnipeg River in particular flows at three and a half times its normal volume.
The Winnipeg River, in turn, flows high due to the strong inflows of its largest tributary, the English River, and Forest Lake, which has been experiencing its largest flood since 1950.
In a forecast released Wednesday, the Forest Lake Control Board projected that the lake will increase another four or five inches over the next week. This will bring the lake about a foot from its record peak of 1,064 feet above sea level, recorded in July 1950.
Hundreds of docks, boat sheds and other structures along the lake have already been damaged or submerged. Kenora City Council on Thursday issued an evacuation order for people living along two low streets.
Based on data from the control panel, Manitoba Hydro projects that the Winnipeg River will cross into Whiteshell Provincial Park, where it widens into Nutimik, Dorothy, Margaret, Eleanor and Sylvia Lakes on June 6 or 7, he said. Owen.
TARGET | Repairs following the Manitoba floods will take years, depending on the province:
Storm damage is taking its toll on Manitoba
The repair bill to fix flood and storm damage in Manitoba is already tens of millions of dollars. The province says it needs to repair or replace more than 2,000 roads, bridges and culverts.
Hydro does not have a precise projection for the crest of Lake Winnipeg. That will depend on the rain in the coming weeks, he said.
However, at least two more months of high water are expected on Lake Winnipeg, raising the prospect of further damage to the coast when the winds rise again.
Sarah Thiele, Manitoba’s deputy chief of infrastructure, said Thursday that the province is evaluating existing protection for lake front communities and will consider “short-term tactical protection” if another major storm is imminent.
The storm that damaged Willow Island earlier this week turned out to be much less violent than expected, he said, adding that there were concerns that the lake may have seen a record wind-induced water level.
The most violent storm on Lake Winnipeg in recent memory occurred in October 2010, when a very deep low-pressure system known as a weather bomb brought cyclonic winds to Manitoba.