Ontario flooding: 200 evacuees return home as waters recede
After snowmelt and ice jams amid warmer temperatures and rain caused rivers to burst their banks in parts of southwestern Ontario Friday, cooler and drier conditions have caused floodwaters to recede and most evacuees to return home.
Around 200 people were forced from around 85 homes in Bolton, Ont., north of Brampton, Friday night and early Saturday morning as the Humber River rose. By Sunday morning, almost all had been allowed home, according to the Canadian Press, and the remainder were expected to be allowed back by the evening.
“We kept monitoring our street and the water just kept rising at an alarming rate,” downtown Bolton resident Malcolm Wilhem told the Caledon Enterprise during the flooding. “We heard the firefighters tell those across the street from our house that their houses should be saved. Twenty minutes later they were forced to evacuate, and you could hear their cries coming from the street. Really sad situation.”
The Town of Caledon, of which Bolton is a part, said Sunday some roads would remain closed until bridges could be inspected, and work to clear ice jams continues.
