Churchill, Manitoba, was placed under a Yellow Rainfall Warning from Environment Canada on Thursday as heavy rain sweeps across the region through the weekend. The agency expects 25 to 50 millimetres of rain by Friday morning and another 15 to 25 millimetres by Sunday afternoon, with the frozen ground unable to soak up the water and raising the risk of flooding in low-lying spots.
The rain began Thursday and continued through the night. As of Friday, Churchill is sitting in mist, 1°C, and 100 per cent humidity, with north winds gusting to 50 km/h. Rain will keep falling through Sunday at 5 to 10 millimetres a period, and gusts could hit 80 km/h.
The ground in Churchill is still frozen solid after a long winter, a common spring problem across Manitoba. When the soil cannot absorb melting snow or rain, water runs across the surface, pooling on roads and creeping into basements. The Manitoba Emergency Management Organization said the local evacuation centre is the Town Centre Complex at 180 Laverendye Avenue if power goes out.
The Manitoba Hydrologic Forecast Centre has been watching flood risks all spring because of above-normal snowpack and a late melt. The combination of rapid runoff and heavy rain puts low-lying areas at extra risk. Churchill knows this threat well: in 2017, the Churchill River hit record flows, flooding cottages, chewing up roads, and washing out part of the rail line.
Residents are asked to steer clear of low-lying roads and watch for water pooling on highways. Environment Canada will update the warning as conditions change, and the town says to call 911 in an emergency.
