Flood fears ease along Sheep River
Posted May 28, 2011 1:44 pm.
This article is more than 5 years old.
The swollen Sheep River running through Okotoks is receding.
“The river has gone down considerably,” Nancy Weigel with the Town of Okotoks tells 660News. “It’s actually amazing how much it has receded. I can tell you our Sheep River Park pathway system will remain closed to the public. It is going to take another day or two for anything to dry out there, but the water has receded considerably.”
Friday, relentless rain caused the river to overflow, pushing water into the Sheep River Park and onto trails.
“There’s a full section of pathway that’s been taken out by our water treatment plant, which is in the Woodhaven area,” adds Weigel. “The stairs below there are damaged, there will be significant pathway damage as well as landscape damage.”
She adds people should avoid getting close to the fast-flowing Sheep River.
“The message is definitely that it’s flowing very, very fast and it’s high,” says Weigel. “It is dangerous. If somebody was to fall in it would be very difficult for them to get to land safely.”
According to the Province, water levels on the Sheep River continue to fall, and Weigel says as long as the rain doesn’t pick up, they believe the worst is over.
So far there is no reported property damage as a result of the high water levels.
