(file footage/ CHATNewsToday)

By Tiffany Goodwein

City reminding residents to be prepared during flood season

May 10, 2022 | 2:17 PM

MEDICINE HAT, AB– It is flood season in Medicine Hat and the city is once again planning, and preparing for any and all outcomes. This morning, city officials met with members of council to provide an update on their procedures and to talk about the likelihood of flooding.

Right now, according to the city, the South Saskatchewan River is flowing at 45 to 48 cubic metres per second, much lower than the average this time of year, which ranges between 60 to 100 cubic metres per second.

To add some additional perspective, during the 2013 flood, the city said the flow rate was between 5200 to 5300 cubic metres per second.

Merrick Brown, the city’s director of Emergency Management said while the flow rate is low right now, everyone still needs to be prepared.

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“When we look at risk we really don’t see the risk until sometimes a week before a flood, and so that is why we always need to be prepared, not only the city as an organization but the public as a while because we are at risk throughout the season every year, and we actually don’t know until we get formal notification,” Brown said.

Brown said there are a number of factors that contribute to flooding such as precipitation, soil moisture, temperature, and snow pillow which is the amount of snow in the mountains and foothills . Right now, Brown said the snow pillow remains fairly high, but warmer temperatures will lead to a melt that will eventually increase the flow rate in the river.

Throughout the years, the city has made a number of improvements to protect homes through clay berms and the installation of sanitary sewer valves to prevent back ups. But Brown said even though we have those protections in place, they are meant to protect property, and evacuations may still need to occur in the event of a flood.

“Community Safety is still our number one priority. As much as property protection is important, lives are our number one priority,” Brown said.

To ensure you and your family are prepared this year, Brown recommends putting together a 72 hour bag and to have a plan for your pets and family should an evacuation occur.