OTTAWA, April 27, 2023 – The City of Ottawa has provided a guideline of five important things for Ottawa River flood zone residents as the river reaches peak levels due to the melt of the snowpack in the uncontrolled part of the basin.
Here are five things the City suggests residents living in flood zones should keep in mind while we all wait and see what happens next on the Ottawa River:
- If flood waters have reached the level of your well head, or covered it, do not drink water from that well until the well water has been tested and you can’t test the water until the river has receded a significant amount more.
- Ottawa Public Health has outlined clear steps that need to be taken before well water is safe again for drinking.
- While water levels remain stable, do not remove any sandbag walls built on or around your property until further notice. Keep visiting the Spring flooding 2023 web page to know when you can remove the sandbags and how to safely dispose of them.
- Sand from sandbags that have been in contact with river water should be considered contaminated. They should not be opened or emptied onto the ground, in gardens or in children’s play areas.
- The City will announce plans to collect sandbags for proper disposal in the coming weeks. In the meantime, please leave sandbag walls in place until conservation authorities have determined the flood risk is over.
For more information on City of Ottawa programs and services, visit ottawa.ca, call 3-1-1 (TTY: 613-580-2401) or 613-580-2400 to contact the City using Canada Video Relay Service. You can also connect with us through Facebook(link is external), Twitter(link is external) and Instagram(link is external).
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