Recalling Quebec's 2019 floods that left 10,500 temporarily homeless
On this day in weather history, Quebec was facing severe flooding.
This Day In Weather History is a daily podcast by Chris Mei from The Weather Network, featuring stories about people, communities and events and how weather impacted them.
--
When you think of classic Quebec weather, snowstorms may be the prevailing mental picture. However, in 2019, the headlining weather event was extreme flooding.
The cause of the catastrophic flooding did start in the province's notable winter. It was a cold and snowy season, so the ground was frozen solid. Toward the end of April, it poured in areas of Quebec.
The residents of Grenville-sur-la-Rouge, Que., evacuated when a local dam seemed it wouldn't hold. On April 27, some residents of Ste-Marthe-sur-le-Lac evacuated when a dike broke.
Throughout the province, 310 municipalities were affected and 10,500 people had to leave their homes.
Click here to subscribe to This Day in Weather History
As of April 30, 9,070 homes and 273 businesses were flooded. The conditions also cause 82 landslides; 760 roads and highways were either completely destroyed or heavily damaged.
More than 1,000 soldiers were sent to support impacted areas. The Canadian Red Cross also set up respite stations to help those displaced by the floods.
The Quebec government provided $26 million to flood victims. According to the Insurance Bureau of Canada, $185 million worth of claims were filed as a result of the flooding.
To learn more about Quebec's 2019 flood, listen to today's episode of "This Day In Weather History."
Subscribe to 'This Day in Weather History': Apple Podcasts | Amazon Alexa | Google Assistant | Spotify | Google Podcasts | iHeartRadio | Overcast'
Thumbnail: Parc Belmont Cartierville. Courtesy of UploadWizard/Wikipedia
