The Flood Issue
As Perth-Andover continues to recover from the Deluge of 2012 we plan to keep you as up to date as possible with news and advice from our various committees. We’d like anyone with news or ideas to share to please drop us a line at blackfly@bellaliant.com . We’ll print your views and opinions along with your hopes and desires for our community, along with offering a healthy dose of our own views!
Al McPhail sent the following message from the Flood Victim’s Committee regarding responses to the survey that was handed out:
“We have received over 100 completed surveys which we had handed out at our April 12 public meeting. This is a great response and gives us a very clear idea about what people are thinking. We are loading all this data onto an Excel spreadsheet and will be able to analyze it in a number of ways. We will report our findings at the next public meeting.To summarize a few points…..flood victims overwhelmingly support the goals and objectives of the Committee (which are to ensure that victims are fairly compensated for their flood related losses in a timely fashion and that they are protected as much as possible from the risks of future flooding); relocation is preferred by most property owners followed by buy-outs and flood-proofing in that order; and finally, 100% of respondents believe they will be flooded again should things remain the same. This latter point indicates that we have a community living in fear and our government must address this immediately.
We have been trying to get a meeting with our Premier (without success thus far) to impress upon him the dire circumstances that people in our community are facing. We need to ensure that the highest level of government exactly what is happening here and what needs be done NOW to address the situation.
We note that officials from EMO met with certain unnamed property owners on April 24 concerning possible buyouts of their properties. We assume these properties were contaminated by oil during the flood but really are only guessing. No doubt many property owners will be asking themselves “what about me?” and this is perfectly understandable. This uncertainty about what is happening and when is perhaps our greatest curse at this time. No doubt ’s CBC News article that the Minister of Environment and Local Government has struck a working group to review the causes of flooding and possible preventative measures will lead to further concern that this whole issue will drag on throughout the summer since this working group is asked to report back at the end of August. Clearly, the Committee will continue to push the government for remedial action at the earliest possible time. We certainly have to get at this long before the end of August.
The Committee very much appreciates the mandate it received from our community and will continue to work on behalf of all flood victims to the best of its ability.”
People live in their chosen communities for various reasons, but it’s been my impression that people live in Perth or the surrounding areas for the quality of life it offers. Our community is attractive and stable. Many homes are 100 years old, or older, especially the houses along the riverbank. And which, as everyone knows, were built back before any dams were erected. Perth is not at fault here, although I’ve read some interesting comments online about how we should all have just sucked it up years ago and moved. (My response to that is not suitable for this family newspaper!)
A community is more than just a collection of scattered houses filled with people. Every community has an energy, a vibration if you will. It depends both upon the citizens and the layout of the community. I’ve always found Perth to be one of the prettiest of the riverfront communities along the St John I New Brunswick. And I did not move here until 1996, long after the flood of ’87 that saw so many homes relocated. I suspect the village felt far more cozy before those homes were moved from their original locations.
My own personal home escaped with minimal damage compared to so many other houses and businesses. Even as bad as this flood was, my riverfront home on East Riverside Drive had water in the basement only. Granted, it was seven freaking feet of water, but it did not reach the boards of the main floor. I can only imagine what all the folks who are out of their homes until they are repaired are going through. I love living on the riverfront and do not want to move. And, I feel like Perth will lose much of its charm if the business community decides to relocate. But we cannot
have another flood like this…a little water in some basements was one thing. This cannot happen again.
Naturally people are waiting to see how the government is going to respond before deciding what they will do. People are stuck in limbo, feeling that they need a firm commitment one way or the other from the government before they make a decision.
Something that we feel is vitally important in how this whole issue is dealt with by folks is, do not wait to see what the government will offer. We must take a stand as a community and declare what we want. Do we all want to remain a cohesive community with a central downtown core? What will it take to make sure this never happens again?
Perhaps we should take a lesson from the Occupy Movement that is effecting change at a global level.
We must tell our government that we will not accept anything less than justice.
It appears that this flood was the equivalent of the so called “perfect storm.” A number of conditions all converged at once with devastating effects for our village which include:
Record breaking warm weather, which we are sure to see more of because of Global Warming.
Massive & rapid run-off from vast tracts of clear-cut land.
With no shade from the sun, snow-pack melted virtually overnight that normally stays put until Summer adding immense volumes of water to the river.
The St John River is choked with silt which has increased the river volume.
Runoff from clear cut timber land increases the volume of silt in the river every year as well. This is only going to get worse so our fears of another flood like this one are fully justified. This supposed 100 year flood could now be a regular occurrence because of these conditions.
And then of course there are those dam gates. Why were all the dams above us fully open but the dams below us only part open or not open at all?
Taking all these conditions into account it now appears obvious that a flood of this magnitude was inevitable at some point. Rivers with dams always silt up over time, and then they begin flooding on a regular basis until the dam is gone.
With so much flood damage displacing people and businesses, rumors are running rampant about who’s closed, who’s open and where they are. So we thought we’d start checking in with people & businesses to get the stories straight from the horses mouth, as it were. We’ll be checking in with everybody but here is information from the folks we’ve spoken to so far.
The wonderful crew from Samaritan’s Purse finished up Monday, April 23. I spoke to Chaplain Coordinator Mark Hidlebaugh and got an update, he said that as of that Monday there were still 67 homes to wash and disinfect. Volunteers were staying on until those jobs were completed.
Over 480 volunteers from as far as 4 hours away came to assist Perth in her time of need. As well as doing the dirty work of cleaning, Chaplain Mark counseled and offered spiritual comfort to many stressed and distraught people in town. I originally met Mark myself when he stopped by my house to see if I needed help in any way…like every other home on Main Street my house had the tell-tale piles of filthy, waterlogged detritus strewn about the yard.
Their web address is www.samaritanspurse.ca .
The story of our village is posted on the site, along with links to all of their many and varied world-wide projects and missions.
The Red Cross is still upstairs at the Civic Center and contact numbers are toll free at 877-356-3226 and local at 273-0381.
EMO has a toll-free number at: 888-298-8555.
The Canadian Legion will be having a gigantic yard sale of all the leftover stuff that was so generously donated to the Flood Relief Cause on Saturday, May 12 at 9 am till 1 pm. All money collected will go to the Flood Relief Fund. The curling rink is still packed with clothing, bedding, knick knacks, kitchen stuff, china, glassware, small appliances and so on. And at least 3 fondue pots, in case you’ve got a burning desire to make some fondue. If you love yard sales, be sure to drop in to check it out!
Hector and Erika at BMR Hardware in downtown Perth are up, running and open for business as they continue with repairs. Stop in to see them for all your hardware and construction needs at the original store. BMR is staying where it is.
Terri Everett of Anytime HairDesign has closed up her shop on East Riverside Drive due to damage and is currently offering mobile hair care services. She will visit you at your home at an appointed time and cut, perm, color or style your hair. Give her a call at 273-3382 to book an appointment.
Linzi (who was at Anytime) is currently serving her clients at Fidele’s up on Perth Hill, as is Pam McLaughlin who had a shop at Hotel Dieu. Call 273-6655 to make an appointment with Fidele or either of these stylists
Faith Moorcroft at The Flowerpot is open for business at her shop at 808 Perth Main Street. She got a foot of water in her store but is up and running as she continues repairs to the floor.
In a truly amazingly fast recovery, the West Riverside Plaza stores were up and running within 3 weeks after the flood. Considering that there were a pair of mallard ducks paddling about in the lake that used to be the parking lot during the flood, this is quite an impressive feat! The mall shops had received major damage, having been flooded with 25 inches of water. All businesses in the mall are now open and serving customers. Patti’s Gift Shoppe, Leroy’s Auto Supplies, Shaw Insurance, and Service New Brunswick are open for business. Also, Taryn Gray RMT has opened shop in the West Riverside Mall to serve her clients.
Back over on the other side of the river, Marty’s Electric and Marty’s Car Wash are open for business. Tiny differences in elevation made huge differences in damages suffered, and Marty’s Electric only had about an inch of water on their floor which they cleaned up fast.
Carolyn’s Dairy Bar has been open since April 9th. They received no water damage, the flood waters only made it to their sidewalk and Carolyn plans to stay where she is.
Mary’s Bakeshop, Perth’s original coffee house, on Perth Main Street, had 6 feet of water in the basement but was ready for business the Thursday following the flood and is open and serving customers.
Nissen’s Market was hit hard by the flood with 2 feet of water in the store. Kendall & Ashley were open that fateful Friday morning on March 23rd, assuming as so many of us did that the ice had broken up and all was well in the world. Until the ice crested over the river bank and started across the road towards their store.
The flood water reached the two foot mark in the store, destroying all merchandise, fixtures and refrigeration. Kendall plans to re-open but with such major work ahead he is not sure when that will happen. He’d like it to be by July, but said he couldn’t be firm. We hope it’s sooner rather than later, Nissen’s Market offered specialty foods, goods and spices not available anywhere else in town.
Brice and Della at Mr B’s and the Pizza Shack fortunately had no water on their main floor. They are up and running and open for business on West Riverside Dive at their regular hours.
Susan McAloon, the proprietor of Checker’s Pizza and BoardwalkVideo, does not know as of right now whether or not she will re-open. She had about two and a half feet water in her businesses. All food inventory and equipment in the restaurant was lost. In Boardwalk Video the water destroyed the database and swept half of the DVD’s to the floor. Sue says that when she was finally able to re-enter her business movies were scattered everywhere throughout both the video store and the restaurant.
Sue’s beautiful and historic old apartment house on East Riverside Drive also received major damage.
Built in 1919 by George Armstrong as a tourist home, the building features lovely details we just don’t see anymore in this age of synthetics and prefabrication. The drawing room has a fabulous tigerwood fireplace mantel and wainscoting throughout as well as a graceful and
elegant staircase with banister.
It is estimated that it will cost nearly $150,000 to repair the flood damage.
The Village Office plans to re-open in late May or Early June in its original, historic building on West Riverside Drive. Council did not want to abandon the downtown core. The village is taking flood mitigation measures as the repair continues to flood-proof the building by removing the basement and using waterproof spray foam insulation
Grant’s Service Centre at 1151 West Riverside Drive accomplished a veritable miracle with a fast and hard after flood clean-up and was up and running again within one week of being halfway submerged. Reg says there was up to 48 inches of water in the back of his shop, and certainly the pictures of his business at the height of the flood are mind boggling. But Reg and his staff are back in business, taking care of all your car care needs along with full gas service. Phone 273-3500
Norm’s Auto Doug and Margaret Pearson bought Norm’s Auto from Margaret’s dad just this past February and one month later faced the flood of 2012. Doug and Kyle managed to get cars left for service out of harm’s way before the shop was buried in four and a half feet of water.
They got the shop running in 2 weeks and are back in business taking care of your automotive needs down at their shop on Perth Main Street just below the hospital. Phone 273-6247
Shimmer & Shine Margaret’s little esthetic’s salon is right next to Norm’s Auto and suffered extensive damage. After 6 long weeks of renovation and repair she will reopen on Tuesday, May 8. Call her at 273-3484 to book an appointment.
Rotten Grapes U Brew Wine & Supplies at 1203 West Riverside Drive is open again. It received extensive flood damage with the water rising over two feet high in the house and business. Jonny, Stacey and friends have got the wine room back together and have started new kits. Call 273-3620 for details or to order a wine kit.
Jonny had been in the middle of remodeling the little house behind this address at 16 Park Street to enlarge the wine room and make an office for the Blackfly Gazette when the disaster struck. That little house sits a bit lower and had a high water mark of about 7 feet on its side. The flood also created a huge sinkhole beside and under the house that caused the cement basement floor to cave into the giant wash-out under the house.
Victoria Villa should be ready for occupation June 1st. The Villa had 22 inches of water throughout the building. Renovations are progressing to recover from the damage. All the tenants were safely evacuated on the 23rd but, thinking it would be another one of those false alarms, Jennifer Eagan’s Aunt Ruth left her cat companions Bob and Joe behind.
Jason Dube, Nathan Pirie and Dale Tomkins, three of our heroic PAFD volunteers, rode a boat to the rescue on Saturday. Bob and Joe had taken refuge on a chest in the closet. Although they did not know Jason they recognized a saviour in their time of need and immediately and without any argument got into kitty carriers and were safely reunited with Ruth..
Our Public Library re-opened on April 24. Although the basement of the library was flooded, by very good fortune and a bit of elevation no water hit the main floor and no books were lost. Tammy, Maj and volunteers are all back in action serving our community.
ScotiaBank is undergoing major reconstruction and renovation to repair flood damage and will re-open in its downtown location as soon as possible to continue to serve the citizens of Perth-Andover. Stay tuned for details.
The Bank of Montreal is open for all banking services in downtown Perth.
Johnson’s Pharmasave is currently doing business at the former KC Hall. All pharmacy services , giftware and personal care items are available at this location The downtown location had about seven inches of water on the main floor and is currently closed. until repairs are made.
Lewis Pharmacy was elevated just enough above the flood to avoid getting water on the main floor. Ryan and Jessica are open at their original location serving the community.
Carl’s Dairy Bar This nifty and historical building, Perth’s original riverside trading post , was pretty much underwater and had to be torn down. However, Rick Beaulieu and team are rebuilding the canteen bigger, better, and HIGHER than before! They will be open soon.
The Black Lion Restaurant & Pub Sadly, the Black Lion received major damage. Along with filling the restaurant with 4 feet of water the flood also undermined the pilings the building sits on. All inventory, furnishings and equipment were lost. Government inspectors demanded that all equipment be disposed of, including stainless steel utensils.
We’re curious as to what our readers think of this. Do you think equipment that was salvageable
and able to be properly disinfected should have been saved, such as stainless steel utensils, or do you think anything touched by flood waters should be discarded as being irretrievably contaminated?
Rod and Colleen would like to re-open the Black Lion but have made no decisions yet.
Erica’s Hair Care at 1185 West Riverside Drive sits just high enough that the salon escaped major damage. The basement was flooded to the floor joists, which soaked through to the main floor in several spots. After cleaning and repair the salon and all services, including Tanning Beds, are open for business at their regular hours. Phone 273-6166 to make an appointment.
Local businesswoman Cindy McLaughlin suffered major damage to her businesses on West Riverside Drive. Both The Riverside Diner and The Look-One Stop are currently closed at this location. Cindy has temporarily moved her dress alteration services and tuxedo rentals up to the Tourism Centre on the Fort Road across from the Tobique Ultramar. She will stay here until the end of June. Please call 273-0850 for more information or to book a fitting.
Contrary to rumours we have heard, Luc Cyr says Brunswick Funeral Home is definitely staying in Perth-Andover. After major clean-up and renovation work they are now re- open ed at their West Riverside Drive location for funerals and services. The Cyrs plan to construct a new building up on a hill and plan to be in the new building by this Fall.
Shelley’s Shears in downtown Perth on Main Street took in 8 inches of water on the main floor. Shelley and Jessica temporarily moved upstairs to serve their clients while repairs were accomplished. They are now back downstairs and open for business. Call 280-0110 to book an appointment.
Kim Restaurant got 2 inches of water in the business. They
closed for 10 days during clean-up
and are now back open at their regular hours.
The law office of Beth Watters-Gray on Perth Main Street got about 3 inches of water. The building sits on a cement slab so with some diligent cleaning Beth’s office is again open for business taking care of your legal needs. Call 273-4666 for consultations.
Alliance Assurance at 630 East Riverside Drive was another fortunate main street business that was just a wee bit higher than the water. There was a temporary replacement agent from out of town working on March 23. She did not hear the alarm siren go off, and was completely unaware of any danger until an upstairs tenant came down and told her it was time to evacuate. She got out just before the bridge was closed. The office re-opened as soon as services to the village were restored.
Perth Elks Club had a basement full of water like every building along the river bank. A low spot in the floor in the lounge area also had water damage. After repairs to the structure and electrical system the Elks Club is back up and running. Yay!
The Law Offices of Mark Johnson were inundated by the rising water with levels reaching up to 3 feet on the main floor. Mark has moved his office to 14 Beech Glen Road for the near future. Please call 273-6818 for consultations.
Virtual Agent Services is not planning to re-open an office in Perth-Andover. Amidst all the terrible destruction and loss from the flood, this just upped the ante of the devastation and this executive decision well and truly stinks. The village offered replacement space to keep this business which provided 65 local jobs within the community, but was turned down. Company officials are not returning calls.
Now more than ever the business community of Perth-Andover needs the loyal support of its citizens. Remember, money is energy and what you direct your energy to grows and thrives. Buy local to support local businesses that provide local jobs. The more our local businesses prosper the more jobs they can provide within our community. A prosperous business community that enjoys the dedicated support of local citizens will attract new businesses, investors and residents. Not to mention preserving or increasing your property value.
We can overcome this, and become stronger than ever. But it’s up to us to decide and take action to make the future we want.
The Waterfront Bistro at 878 Main Street got 5 feet of water in the basement but fortunately escaped any damage to the main floor of the restaurant. Charles and Shirley are open Wed-Sun from 10 am to 4 pm, and open until 8 pm on Fridays.
Baird’s Campground was nearly washed away during the flood. The Bogan had water levels inside up to four and a half feet. Charlene and Alfred would like very much to re-open the Bogan but like everyone else caught in Flood Limbo, they have made no firm decisions about this. However, they do plan to get the Campground up and running again by Summer.
LaFrance Saw Sales & Welding on West Riverside Drive was another of the riverfront businesses that miraculously escaped harm. Eric Lafrance entered his shop after the flood to find that only a few cupfuls of water had puddled inside the front door.
The Post Office Is open again on East Riverside Drive! The building took in close to 2 feet of water and was closed for several weeks but is now back in service.
Creative Cuts Walk-In at 784 Main Street got nailed with 3 feet of water. Anne is now back open serving clients. Call 273-3163.
AP McPhail Financial Planning
Al is currently working out of temporary quarters until further notice. Please call him at 273-9491 or on his cell at 273-0779
If we’ve missed listing your business please accept our apologies! Contact us at 273-2899 (BUZZ) or 273-6309 with any updates or information.
Thanks!
Email: blackfly@bellaliant.com
