Environment Canada was predicting record rainfall, followed by hours of freezing rain on Saturday, as a Texas low swept across the province bringing moisture from the Gulf of Mexico.
Most areas were expected to see between 20 and 40 mm of rainfall, with some areas receiving 60 mm or more – in the GTA, potentially a month’s worth of rainfall within a 24-hour period. With the ground frozen in most locales, flooding was being predicted in low-lying areas.
By 2 p.m., some of the areas most prone to flooding in the Town of Innisfil were already under water.
Water poured across Shoreacres Drive at Sideroad 20; ditches were full to over-flowing on Park Road along the north side of Innisfil Beach Park – and in Belle Ewart, Town crews blocked off Maple Rd. at Belle Aire Beach Rd. (Line 5) to deploy the pumps, and address extensive flooding on private property.
Other areas affected included sections of Hwy. 89, Sideroad 20, Line 13, and Buchanan Street. Residents were advised to avoid driving through flooded areas and standing water.
As part of the town’s response, all branches of the Innisfil ideaLAB and Library closed early.
The town was also on alert for the expected arrival of a cold front later in the evening – bringing freezing rain, ice accretions of 10 to 20 mm, and high winds. The combination could bring down power lines and tree branches leading to power outages, residents were warned.
Mayor Lynn Dollin, at a Town New Year’s Levee in Cookstown earlier in the day, warned that Innisfil’s Emergency Management Operations Centre could be opened, depending on conditions. The last time it was in operation was in April 2016, for the major ice storm on Easter weekend.
