COMBERMERE – Pine Cliff Resort in Combermere is the most recent victim to the flooding that has hit the area.
This is the third round of flooding that has hit the area in recent weeks. It began again on May 2, when the ground began to give way at the cottages along the river. Crosstown Construction came in and did some emergency work for the resort through to May 3, when more landslides began. Residents were also given evacuation notices on this date.
“The week before, we had warned people not to come. Everybody has a mind of their own so some people did come. Then we had the two landslides and it was just not an option anymore. Most and foremost, human life is more valuable than anything,” explained owner of Pine Cliff Resort, Brian Allingham. “We didn’t want anyone falling over the edge into the river or getting hurt and with the amount of trucks coming in and out of here its confusion. It’s organized confusion, but it is confusion.”
The fire chief for Madawaska Valley said that giving evacuation notices is a rarity for this area.
“An evacuation like that is called for the safety of people in a place such as that,” Corwin Quade said. “People may be trapped either in their homes, residences or trailers, or they are in danger of being injured or killed due to weather conditions. It’s not something we call very often, it’s actually quite rare I this area.”
Get your May 10, 2017 edition of The Valley Gazette to read the full article.