States of emergency in Southern Alberta
Posted Jun 21, 2013 2:00 am.
This article is more than 5 years old.
The hardest hit area is High River, with residents saying the flooding is the worst they’ve seen.
Officials issued an emergency evacuation alert for the whole town Thursday due to extremely dangerous and rapid flooding.
Roughly 150 people were waiting on the roofs of their houses to be rescued. Currently, High River High School and Charles Clark Medical Centre are two places open for evacuees. The ER department at High River Hospital is closed. This facility is not currently accessible by road. If you are experiencing a medical emergency, please dial 9-1-1.
Bragg Creek residents have been told to evacuate due to power outages and flooding, with voluntary evacuation issued for West Bragg Creek.
A local state of emergency has also been issued in Canmore and Lethbridge. However, the county of Lethbridge has cancelled the Electricity Supply Alert. More than 3 dozen homes were evacuated along the riverbanks along with numerous businesses and a nearby campground.
Mudslides along the Trans-Canada Highway have cut off towns near Canmore and Banff. The military issued a news release saying two helicopters and a Hercules aircraft have been deployed to the affected areas to assist in extracting people who are stranded.
The request for help was made by the RCMP. The ER department at Canmore General Hosptial is open. Both sides of Cougar Creek in Canmore has been evacuated and while the bridge that joins the east and the west side has not been washed out, officials are concerned about its structural integrity. Canmore Collegiate High School is the evacuation centre.
There are evacuations in the town of Okotoks. Riverside Drive East and South Railway Street are closed, while the campground and Heartland Retirement Residence at Riverside Gate have been evacuated. The town of Okotoks is under an overland flood alert. There is a large amount of water from the Sheep River traveling across land. While officials reported late Thursday night that the water appeared to have peaked and may actually be receding, another evacuation alert went out affecting dozens more homes.
Okotoks officials say the quality of the drinking water is good and is being closely monitored by Epcor Water Services due to the high flows and turbidity. Just so you are prepared, in any of the areas affected by flooding, you’re advised to fill a water container so that you have some water on hand.
A mandatory evacuation order has been issued in Turner Valley, with 50 homes evacuated and the possibility of more following the rupture of a sour gas pipeline. The potentially life-threatening rupture has experts urging residents to stay indoors, since sour gas is extremely toxic even in small amounts because of its high sulphur content. The rupture is thought to have been caused by floodwaters.
High water flows in three creeks in and near the Hamlet of Exshaw are causing problems within the hamlet and have shut down Highway 1A through Exshaw.
West of Calgary, Jumping Pound Creek has breached the bank. Residents in Bow Meadows and Crawford Ranch should take all necessary precautions and be prepared to evacuate. There is no mandatory evacuation in effect at this time, however, if residents are wanting to voluntarily evacuate, a reception centre has been set up at Frank Mills Hall at #405, 1 Street East, in Cochrane.
Flood Watches are in effect for streams in the Bow and Oldman River basins. The Red Deer River downstream of Gleniffer Reservoir, including the cities of Red Deer and Drumheller have been upgraded to a Flood Warning. Flooding of areas adjacent to these streams may occur.
