The Saugeen Valley Conservation Authority says there is a reason there has been so much flooding this spring.
They say it hasn’t been a typical season. The conservation authority says based on data it’s gathered, the numbers tell a story.
The say snowpack water content was 159 per cent of its normal level heading into spring and early March brought 22mm of rain on top of rapid snowmelt.
According to the conservation authority, March rainfall reached 298 per cent of its historical average, and so far, April is sitting at 183 per cent of normal rainfall.
They say, “The ground is already fully saturated, so there’s nowhere for water to soak in. All of that water had to go somewhere – and it did.”
On top of that, they note, “Streamflows in the main Saugeen River hit levels you’d only expect once every 9.5 years. In Walkerton, flows exceeded typical spring peak levels twice, nearly doing so again on April 16.”
The SVCA says the last time last time they saw a spring melt like this was in 2018.
Conditions like this increase the risk of flooding quickly. Please stay back from rivers and fast-moving water, and keep safety top of mind.