REGINA — It was Regina’s turn to be on the receiving end of the summer storms overnight.
There were reports of flooding in parts of the city, as storm drains struggled to clear the amount of precipitation. Ring Road was particularly hard hit, and there were numerous reports of detours on Regina streets throughout the day.
In the scrum with reporters today at City Hall, Regina’s Director of Water Waste and Environment Kurtis Doney reported the city had received 40 to 60 millimetres of rain since midnight last night.
The rainfall fell on the city between midnight and 8 a.m. with the northwest of the city receiving the most precipitation, with more than 60 mm of rain there. The south was generally the least impacted, seeing closer to 40 mm.
Doney said city crews were out clearing 22,000 storm drains and that would take some time. Residents were also being encouraged to help keep local storm drains clear, if it safe to do so.
The city was also discouraging drivers from driving their cars into flooded areas. On that note, Doney told reporters the city has “adjusted our tactics slightly,” he said.
“You may have seen graders at the Albert Street bypass. This is to prevent driving into flooded areas under the underpass. This time it worked, we had graders installed, and nobody was stuck under the Albert Street bypass.”
As for the flooding, Doney noted it was OK to have minor flooding on streets, as that ensures water was being contained on the street right away. “We’re really focused on ensuring it doesn’t impact residents and businesses.”
Doney also noted the city had received about 100 to 125 phone calls across all different areas, regarding issues such as downed trees or sewer backups.
In general, he told reporters, it takes about 24 hours for the storm system to completely recover.
In terms of the amount of rainfall, Doney expects it will have been a one-in-10- to one-in-25-year-event, which he described as "significant,” but more details will be needed before they are able to classify the storm event. He did say the June 11 rain event last year would have been larger at 75 mm of rain.
Ring Road was particularly hit at its underpasses in this rainfall. This morning, the city posted on Twitter that Ring Road underpasses were closed at the Winnipeg underpass, and eastbound Ring Road at Winnipeg St. was also closed.
By the afternoon it was also reported that Ross Avenue was closed and Dewdney Avenue and Winnipeg Street underpass was also closed.
By 7:15 p.m. in the evening, the city reported on its website there were still several road closures on Ring Road.
Those included Ring Road at Ross Avenue, Northbound Ring Road closed from Victoria Avenue with northbound traffic detoured to exit onto Victoria Avenue and Southbound Ring Road closed from McDonald Street with southbound traffic detoured to exit at McDonald Street.
