Kelly: Flood work

This is a difficult time for our community. The unknown of rising flood waters has left many anxious and I have been working with the city and the community to try to help relieve some of that anxiety.

Water levels can change quickly and the amount of work it takes to protect ones property from rising waters is exhausting. Many in our area have a difficult time with the sheer weight and size of the task ahead of them and it is for that reason that we greatly appreciate all of the volunteers and city employees who have taken the time to help where help was so sorely needed.

There is a lot of work ahead and managing after a flood is another time and energy consuming process. We will continue to lean on volunteers and city employees as we work our way out of this and take lessons learned from this situation and apply them to our future planning. I would like to see a community where that anxiety is alleviated before any flooding starts because of a well-thought-out preparedness plan.

During the flood preparedness meeting we held at the ward office on Carp Road, we heard concerns from residents about the timing of activities and the limits to access of information. Many residents wanted to see a more informative water level forecast that focused less on metres above sea level and more on giving an easily understood level of danger based on the size of previous floods.

It was encouraging the see city communications that compared levels to both the 2017 and 2019 floods to help give our residents a more easily understood context for what was coming. City staff also decided to begin providing sand quickly, two days before the forecast beginning of flood issues, and for that we are grateful.

A more robust communication network was another comment heard at our meeting and this is something that we will continue to work toward. There were issues with the surprise of the sand drop-off catching residents off guard and about some of the locations of sand drop-offs. City staff responded quickly to most of these concerns, and we will take that information and apply it to any future events that require these types of emergency measures. Again, I cannot emphasize how encouraged I have been by the hard work and responsiveness of both volunteers and the city and will continue to express my gratitude.

The city has its scalable response and plan in emergencies like these but has shown the ability to be flexible and adapt to the needs of residents. Our residents have been through these situations before and understand the sort of issues that occur when a certain part of a road is blocked, or if one position is much closer to the water level than another. During our meeting, City staff showed up and took the concerns of residents back to their respective groups and we are happy to facilitate this sort of dialogue between the employees of the City and the community they represent. We have a strong community that has been through these difficulties before and continues to show its resilience and spirit throughout this process.

The work of the West Carleton Disaster Relief (WCDR) team needs to be highlighted because their organization and management during the crisis has been exceptional. From their makeshift HQ at the Constance & Buckham’s Bay community centre, Heather Lucente and her team were able to guide the multitudes of volunteers and city staff and aid our office in assisting.

We encourage residents to look into the work done by the WCDR if they have concerns about future disasters or incidents requiring emergency assistance. Visiting westcarletonrelief.ca is a good first step for residents in preparing themselves and their property for the potential of flooding or other emergency situations.

Volunteerism is an incredible thing and I cannot stress how impressed I have been with the volunteers that have assisted during the flooding. It is incumbent on all of us to help our neighbours when we can and my office will work toward advertising volunteer opportunities and organizing people when they are needed. We love the volunteers who’ve shown up for us so far, but there is also a need for more. People need not show up for full shifts, any help at all is greatly appreciated by those in danger during a flood. Smiles and appreciative handshakes abound and there are few better feelings than helping your neighbours. These are the things that create the strong fibre of a community that can endure such trials.

Again, I’d like to thank everyone who has volunteered their time and energy to assist our community this week.

To read all Coun. Clarke Kelly’s columns, click here.

The preceding column was written by City of Ottawa Ward 5 Coun. Clarke Kelly, part of the councillor’s ongoing, bi-weekly column for West Carleton Online, made available to the entire community through an agreement with the publisher.