Provincial government officials will provide an update on road washouts and other effects on infrastructure caused by relentless heavy rain on the southwest coast.
Premier Andrew Furey, Public Safety Minister John Hogan, Transportation Minister Elvis Loveless and Burgeo-Lapoile MHA Andrew Parsons will hold a media availability this afternoon at 2 p.m.
VOCM News will carry the news conference live.
(Photo via RCMP.)
Torrential rain continues to pound the southwest corner of the island washing out roads, flooding basements and leaving sewage systems strained to the max.
About 130 mm of rain has fallen in the Port aux Basques area with even more down in the Codroy Valley.
The TCH is washed out in a number of locations on the southwest coast.
Mayor Brian Button says the rain is not letting up one bit. They have closed off the access into town near the Irving and the railway museum as flood waters are running over the road.
The town is asking residents to conserve water.
He’s amazed that damage is not more significant. Lift stations are not able to handle the volume of what which is going through.
I don't like how this is lining up, Some heavier rain bands all lining up in the direction of flow. The whole band is sliding a bit eastward now, it will come back westward again tonight, though it should be less intense. Stay off the roads if you can. #nltraffic #nlwx pic.twitter.com/VYFANOOe56
— Justin Boudreau (@Isotachtics) November 24, 2021
Marine Atlantic is not moving today or tonight and might not be going anywhere tomorrow either.
Area MHA Andrew Parsons says his main concern is the well-being of people, especially with the area cut off from road access to Western Regional Memorial Hospital in Corner Brook.
Parsons is confident that engineers from the transportation department will come up with a way to restore some road access.
(Main Access Road Port aux Basques closed, detour in place. Photo courtesy Rene Roy, Wreckhouse Community Newspaper.)
In addition to the TCH washouts, there are many other roads closed including the Grand Bay bridge in Port aux Basques. People are asked to avoid travel on the TCH between Cape Ray and North Branch as the TCH near North Branch and the westbound off-ramp of the TCH into Port aux Basques are closed.
Route 470, the Lapoile Highway, which runs along the coastline from Port aux Basques to several communities including Isle aux Morts is closed.
Meteorologist Boudreau says the rain should be a little less intense later this afternoon and tonight than it has been. He says the Codroy Valley, where significant damage has occurred, is geographically susceptible to flooding.
He says it’s not necessarily a flood plane but anytime that you have a stream or river running through the bottom of a valley-like area, that’s usually where the flooding will happen and that’s why we’ve seen numerous washouts in that area.
- Current Road Closures:
- TCH 25 km northwest of Port aux Basques between North branch and Tompkins
- TCH 10 km north of the Doyles intersection
- TCH16 km southwest of the Doyles intersection closed until an assessment can be completed
- TCH 5 km north of Cape Ray
- Main Access Road Port aux Basques closed, detour in place
- TCH Grand Bay Bridge in Port aux Basques
- TCH Port aux Basques weight scales
- Westbound off-ramp of the TCH into Port aux Basques
- Route 406 Doyle’s Station Road
- Route 413 St. Andrews
- Route 470, the Lapoile Highway
- Lock Lomond Road closed to one lane
- Upper Ferry Road closed to one lane
- Cape St. George Highway Abraham’s Cove to Cape St. George
- First responders and members of the public wishing to report urgent highway conditions, or motorists looking for recent road condition information can contact the Department of Transportation and Infrastructure:
- Avalon: 709-729-7669
- Eastern: 709-466-4160
- Central: 709-292-4444
- Western: 709-635-4144
- Labrador: 709-896-7888
Roads Continue to Deteriorate with More Rain Still to Come for Southwest Coast - VOCM
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