Canada floods: Ottawa, Montreal declare emergency

Ottawa (Canada): Ottawa and Montreal on Friday declared a state of emergency ahead of more flooding and heavy downpour predicted by the meteorological department of the country.

Canadian Public Safety Minister Ralph Goodale told reporters that the military is ready to deploy when needed, with more than 1,700 troops likely to be used in Quebec and Ontario and New Brunswick, CNN reported.

According to the state media, Ontario Premier Doug Ford, while taking a tour of Ottawa on Friday, noted climate change as a possible reason behind eastern Ontario's heavy flooding for the second time in three years.

Goodale too had touched on the aspect of climate change in his press briefing, saying, "These wild cycles from storms and floods to droughts and wildfires -- that is a very serious national problem; it is a public safety problem, and we all have to work conscientiously together.

"I think we all have to learn the lessons of climate change. The impacts here are powerful and dangerous and damaging, and this is one of the most obvious manifestations of a changing climate. (We have) more unstable weather conditions where you can get precipitation that dumps about a year's worth of moisture in a day or two, and then it all floods and causes enormous damage to private property as well as public infrastructure as well as the economy," he added.

Meanwhile, Ottawa Mayor Jim Watson warned that the Ottawa River and tributaries are expected to continue rising over the next several days.

Environment Canada, the country's environmental agency, has predicted a heavy rainfall with 20 to 35 millimetres (up to nearly an inch) forecast by Saturday morning.

"The engineers who designed the facility believe that it was designed to withstand this volume, but it's still raining in the region so the problem could worsen," Goodale stated.

"The evacuations have already now largely taken place. The problem is that if the dam were to give way, people in the area would have less than an hour to get out of the surging water. It is a rural, remote region, and it is not the easiest area to get into or out of; in fact, some of the people have been removed by helicopter, I understand," Goodale was quoted as saying.

Authorities told CNN that more than 3,100 homes have been flooded, and more than 1,100 residents have been evacuated. In New Brunswick, floodwaters have dropped and stabilized, but officials said they are worried about more rain.

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