Maple Ridge escaped with minor flooding on north 224th Street, along with having a few homes without power, following Thursday’s rain storm.
The City of Maple Ridge closed 224th Street between 132nd and 136th Avenue, early Friday morning after water levels rose nearby. The area often floods during heavy rains.
The road reopened later in the morning between 132nd and 136th avenues after water levels quickly dropped, but the road remained closed north of 136th Avenue.
Scotty Phillips, at TCB Ranch on 224th and 132nd Avenue, was busy clearing out a drainage ditch next to 224th Street with a small backhoe on Friday morning. He didn’t have the time to clear away weeds earlier this year and had expected some flooding.
But waters also came into the hay room on his ranch upstream, only the second time that’s happened in the 16 years he’s been living there.
“We never had floods like this until they (the city) raised the road,” (132nd Avenue), Phillips said.
“So when they raised the road and widened the shoulder, they cut off the drainage so it sits on my field.”
Flood waters also swamped two houses farther north in the 13400-block of 224th Street, putting the garage and first floors about a metre under water. Rob Jeglum, who contracts with C & C Electrical-Mechanical, said he was called to the site by the home owner at about 3 a.m. He tried calling the city to get some sand bags but was told to wait until 7:30 a.m.
Maple Ridge operations though did put up barricades early in the morning, at 3:40 a.m., to divert traffic. The city notes the area is in the floodplain of the North Alouette River, resulting in flooding of some homes.
Maple Ridge said that water levels on 224th Street dropped quickly and 224th Street has reopened between 132nd to 136th Avenue. “Barricades will remain in place until the water recedes north of 136th Avenue. Crews expect that section of road to reopen later today.”
Maple Ridge staff also note that the rainfall co-incided with high tides that would have backed up the Pitt River, affecting the Alouette which empties into the Pitt River.
“With the low tide this morning the water levels receded quickly.”
Environment Canada reported 43 millimetres of rain on Thursday, with a high of 14 C.
About 10 homes in the east Maple Ridge area also lost power around 252nd and 256th streets, as well as around Garibaldi Street, early Friday. Crews are currently trying to find out the cause of the power outages.
The City of Maple Ridge is asking people if they have a storm water basin close to their homes to clear away any debris to allow proper drainage of storm water.
The city adds that strata properties and home owners need to rake up leaves and put them in a compost pile or dispose of them in with organic waste instead of spreading them on to the roads.
