Evacuation order issued as dam at risk of breaching near Windsor, N.S.

The latest:

• Four people missing after vehicles became submerged in floodwaters
• Evacuation order for Fancy Lake area in Lunenburg County
• Evacuation order lifted for people living near St. Croix River system
• Risk of St. Croix dam breach now ‘under control,’ says mayor 
• Officials warn of flooding on several highways throughout province; multiple roads closed in Halifax
• If the power or data on your device is low, get your storm updates on text-only CBC Lite.

Four people — including two children and a youth — have been reported missing in the West Hants area of Nova Scotia after the vehicles they were travelling in became submerged in floodwaters, RCMP say.

Cpl. Guillaume Tremblay said two separate searches started early Saturday at the height of the storm.

“Two children are unaccounted for in relation to an incident in West Hants where a vehicle they were travelling in was submerged,” Tremblay said Saturday afternoon.

“Three of the five occupants known to have been in that vehicle were able to escape.”

A man and a youth are also missing after the vehicle they were in was submerged. Two of the four occupants of that vehicle were rescued.

Tremblay said RCMP are not revealing the exact locations of the searches because they don’t want people interfering with the organized search teams.

In a press conference late Saturday afternoon, Premier Tim Houston said the search will continue as long as necessary. 

“The search continues for four loved ones and good people are working hard to find them. We pray for their safe return,” Houston said.

There are no other reports of missing persons, said police.

Much of central Nova Scotia, including areas of the Halifax Regional Municipality, has been dealing with severe flooding and impassable roads Saturday after torrential downpours swamped much of the province overnight Friday.

Overnight rain caused flooding and damage across Nova Scotia, where thousands remain without power.

A provincewide state of emergency has been declared as of Saturday evening, which will remain in effect until Aug. 5, unless the government ends or extends it.

A news release said the state of emergency will allow officials to limit travel in seriously affected areas, allow the deployment of extra resources to help with response and recovery and facilitate the restoration of damaged infrastructure.

Evacuation order lifted for St. Croix River system

An evacuation order that had been issued early Saturday for people living along the St. Croix River system near Windsor, N.S., has been lifted.

An emergency alert was sent to cellphones in the area at 3:41 a.m. AT, warning people to leave the area. The nearby dam was also at risk of breaching.

Windsor and West Hants Municipality Mayor Abraham Zebian says that as of Saturday morning, the dam is no longer at risk.

“Thankfully it is under control, they relieved some water from that dam and we’ve got most of the area evacuated now,” he said.

Just before 3 p.m., a new emergency alert said people could return home if safe to do so, but asked them to “remain vigilant.”

Windsor, located in Hants County, is about 60 kilometres northwest of downtown Halifax.

Zebian said some roads were completely submerged and there have been lots of washouts in the area.

“We’ll keep on watching the water levels and keep on draining that dam, and keep on moving forward trying to get more road networks cleared up and opened up,” he said.

Windsor and West Hants Municipality Mayor Abraham Zebian describes the torrential rain that hit Nova Scotia overnight and led to an evacuation order for people living near the St. Croix River system.

Those in need of a place to go can go to one of four centres in the Windsor area, including:

• Falmouth Elementary School at 30 School St., Falmouth
• the Brooklyn Civic Centre at 995 Highway 215, Newport
• the South West Hants Fire Hall on Highway 114 on Chester Road in Windsor
• and the Windsor Civic Centre at 78 Thomas St. in Windsor

Anyone in the area who is still in need of emergency help evacuating should call 911, Zebian said.

He said resources are stretched,  but crews would continue to work to complete all necessary evacuations and keep monitoring the dam.

An evacuation order remains in effect for homes around the Fancy Lake area near Bridgewater, N.S., due to severe flooding.

Nova Scotia’s road conditions website is warning of flooding on highways 101, 102, 103, 107, 111 and 118.

Information about road closures across the province can be found here.

Halifax Regional Municipality also battling floods

Halifax has also been caught in the deluge, with Halifax Regional Police warning that multiple roads are closed to all traffic. 

“It’s unlike anything I’ve seen here,” said Halifax Mayor Mike Savage.”It’s quite a violent storm and the ground, of course, is very saturated now, so any rain we continue to get only adds to the problem we have.”

A map of roads blocked due to flooding in the Halifax region is available here. 

The municipality has opened a comfort centre at the East Dartmouth Community Centre for residents dealing with power outages and flooding. It will stay open overnight Saturday.

Savage said about 750 people were evacuated from their homes, and 150 people have needed support thus far.

He acknowledged that the last few months have been challenging in the province.

“We’ve had our own little tour of Armageddon,” he said. “We had the horrific wildfires at the end of May into June and now we have flooding, so it seems like all the plagues are hitting us.” 

Police warned early Saturday that the storm has left rocks, gravel and other debris on roads throughout the region. They also said a number of vehicles that had been abandoned on flooded roads were towed. 

In a release Saturday morning, the municipality advised drivers and pedestrians to stay off roads due to unsafe conditions.

“Numerous roads are washed out and remain closed due to flooding. There are abandoned cars on roads and highways causing dangerous conditions. There is a significant amount of damage,” the city said. 

Emergency flooding calls can be directed to Halifax Water at 902-420-9287, while damage to infrastructure and roads can be reported by calling 311 or emailing hrm_emo@halifax.ca. 

Those travelling on Halifax Transit can expect significant delays and detours, said the HRM, and updates will be provided on Twitter and on the city’s website.

CBC meteorologist Ryan Snoddon said this “is a historic flood event for Nova Scotia.”

Preliminary estimates show up to 250 millimetres of rain fell in some areas as of 6 a.m. Saturday, Snoddon said, adding that in the Halifax area, it appears to be the heaviest rainfall event since 1971.

More rain is expected to fall Saturday evening and into Sunday.

More than 70,000 customers lost power

Nova Scotia Power (NSP) says it has been dealing with outages in the Halifax and Liverpool areas that were caused by lightning. At the peak of the storm, more than 70,000 customers were without power, the utility said. 

Most customers had their power restored by 7 p.m. Sunday, with remaining outages expected to be restored by Sunday morning.

“Our crews are working and navigating the flooded roads to try and get power back on as quickly and safely as possible,” said Matt Drover, NSP’s storm lead at its emergency operation centre. 

Drover said the HRM and the western part of the province’s South Shore was hit the hardest by the lightning. 

Many roads are completely impassable, he said, and crews are working with the province’s Emergency Management Office to safely navigate around them.

Storms of this nature are only becoming more common, he noted. 

“Hurricane Fiona was only last year, so not even a year ago, and also the wildfires are recent as well,” said Drover.

“We have seen on our system, definitely more frequency and more intense storms than we ever have before”

NSP says its hydro team is also in the field closely monitoring and managing its systems.

“The four-river systems of concern are the Mersey [River], St. Margaret’s Bay, Fall River and the Avon River systems,” said David Pickles, the utility’s chief operating officer. “We are coordinating with both local and provincial EMO partners to ensure the safety of surrounding homes and communities.” 

Halifax District RCMP are advising motorists to stay home due to bad weather and say there have been multiple reports of local flooding on Hammonds Plains Road, Lucasville Road, Sackville Cross Road, and parts of Sackville Drive and Beaverbank Road.

“Right now, the best thing people can do is stay home, monitor weather and news reports and check in on your neighbours who may need assistance,” said Premier Tim Houston in a release Saturday afternoon.

Homes and roads have been damaged in the Windsor area of Nova Scotia after torrential downpours swamped the province overnight.

The province says a full assessment of damage won’t be possible until the floodwaters recede.

The Canadian National Railway (CN) shut down a section of its track near Halifax on Friday evening, a spokesperson for the company confirmed. CN said it’s inspecting the track and making repairs, and it will be reopened as soon as crews have finished their work.

The closing ceremony for the North American Indigenous Games in Halifax set for Friday was cancelled, though there are a few events remaining on the schedule for Saturday.

The Halifax Pride parade, set for Sunday, has also been postponed.