DDO residents still cleaning up after major flooding
Up to 1,500 homes in Dollard-des-Ormeaux were affected by extreme rainfall that dumped 150-170 millimetres in 45 minutes.
The day's top stories, food & events — every morning at 7. Unsubscribe anytime.
More than a week after heavy rainfall hit Montreal's West Island, residents in Dollard-des-Ormeaux are still dealing with the aftermath.
Kulwant Sandhu, who lives in DDO, had three feet of water flood his basement. Water poured in from his garage and he had to quickly gather belongings as the basement filled. He still doesn't have working lights in the basement.
"It's very bad. It's hard to explain. It's very bad," Sandhu said.
According to Mayor Alex Bottausci, up to 1,500 houses in the municipality were affected by the floods. The city's water systems are designed to handle 80 to 90 millimetres of water over a couple of days. The rainfall that fell last weekend was between 150 to 170 millimetres in just 45 minutes — equivalent to five to seven feet of snow being dumped in that span.
The City of DDO has about 13 teams on the ground cleaning up, including crews from neighbouring boroughs and private contractors. The municipality is working to strengthen flood mitigation strategies. One project underway is an underground stormwater retention basin on Tecumseh Street that will hold 600,000 litres of water.
