Surging water levels and heavy rain from the Nov. 15 atmospheric river damaged pedestrian bridges and clogged park trails with mud and debris, 91原创 City manager of engineering services Hirod Gill told council Monday, Dec. 6.
Seven of 20 pedestrian bridges inspected by City staff 鈥渘eeded some work and have been taken care of,鈥� Gill reported, including one over Pleasantdale creek that was 鈥渄islocated.鈥�
At the height of the flooding, at least six roads were closed, including 50th Ave. between 198B and 197A Streets, where a culvert was blocked.
Gill praised City workers for their fast response.
鈥淐rews did an amazing job on cleanup,鈥� Gill told council.
One benefit of the record rainfall will be the City effort to update flood plain mapping, which helps set limits on construction on or near flood-prone areas.
鈥淭his recent flood will help us a lot,鈥� Gill explained.
鈥淚t gave us some good data to calibrate our model better. Hopefully we will come up with a more accurate model for our rivers and creeks.鈥�
Mayor Val van den Broek thanked City crews for their quick response.
鈥淲e鈥檝e got an absolutely fantastic staff at the city,鈥� van den Broek commented.
Councillor Paul Albrecht commended staff for their hard work, saying 鈥渕y appreciation goes beyond words,鈥� and going on to describe them as 鈥渁 real credit to our community.鈥�
Albrecht also thanked residents who helped prevent flooding by clearing drains and catch basins.
Coun. Nathan Pachal was 鈥渞eally impressed鈥� with the speed of the trail cleanup.
鈥淚 was on the trail the weekend after and it was completely walkable,鈥� Pachal noted.
READ ALSO: VIDEO: 91原创 recovers from record rainstorm
Coun. Rudy Storteboom viewed the flooding as 鈥渁 learning opportunity here, that we really need to take into consideration, as the flooding was mostly on the east end of our city. So I look forward to staying connected with staff and seeing what we can do to mitigate those problems for the future.鈥�
Coun. Rosemary Wallace was looking forward to an updated City flood plain map ,calling it 鈥渘ecessary.鈥�
READ ALSO: 91原创 mayors consider future of development after local floods
According to Environment Canada, 52.4 millimetres of rain fell in 91原创 on Nov. 15 beating the previous all-time record of 28 millimetres set in 1985.
It was part of an 鈥� 鈥� that happens when columns of moisture gather over the Pacific ocean in warm water plumes and travel in a band of vapor, bring torrential downpours.
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