Issued by: John Bittorf, Water Resources Coordinator
To: Watershed Municipalities and Watershed Media
Message:
Some watersheds within Grey Sauble area have already received 50mm of rain with more in the forecast. As a result, fields and low-lying areas are experiencing significant ponding and overland flow. Small watercourses and drainage ditches are becoming overwhelmed, resulting in localized flooding situations. Larger river systems are just starting to respond and are expected to continue to rise throughout the day and into the night. Levels on these systems may exceed normal spring runoff levels. However, unusual riverine flooding is not expected at this time.
Flood watches are issued when flooding is possible along local watercourses. Landowners within known flood prone areas should monitor their situation and be prepared in case of flooding.
Grey Sauble Conservation Authority would like to remind everyone that during spring runoff events, potential conditions exist that could pose a risk to personal safety. High flows, unsafe banks, or other factors could be dangerous for residents and pets. Stay back from riverbanks and away from fast moving water.
Grey Sauble staff will continue to monitor the weather and the flows and provide additional updates as needed. Watershed residents can access stream flow and rain gauge data through our Watershed Conditions page on our website (http://www.greysauble.on.ca/water-management/current-watershedconditions/).
This Statement expires April 8th at 12pm unless replaced by further updates.
Message Number: 2023-01 Issued on: March 31, 2023 (9:00am) Issued by: John Bittorf, Water Resources Coordinator To: Watershed Municipalities and Watershed Media
Message:
Two weather systems will affect our area over the next two days. The first will move through today bringing some snow. The snow will then change to rain this afternoon or evening and may become heavy overnight as a second and much stronger system begins to move in. Both systems have the potential to deliver periods of heavy rainfall which will quickly turn into surface runoff. With the soils already saturated, we expect smaller drainage features to respond quickly and may experience localized or urban flooding. The larger watersheds will respond and may reach levels close to average spring runoff conditions. No major flooding is expected at this time, but watercourses may reach or exceed their banks. Seasonal flooding of low-lying and poorly drained areas is expected.
The remaining snowpack is restricted to woodlots, heavily drifted areas, and snowbanks. It will continue to reduce and may contribute to some of the runoff. Our river systems are clear of ice cover and should not be at risk to ice jamming.
Grey Sauble Conservation Authority would like to remind everyone that during spring runoff events, potential conditions exist that could pose a risk to personal safety. High flows, unsafe banks, melting ice or other factors could be dangerous for residents and pets. Stay back from riverbanks and away from fast moving water.
Grey Sauble staff will continue to monitor the weather and the flows and provide additional updates as needed. Watershed residents can access snow, stream flow and rain gauge data through our Watershed Conditions page on our website: https://www.greysauble.on.ca/water-management/current-watershed-conditions/.
This Statement expires April 3rd, 2023 at 12pm unless replaced by further updates.
Message Number: 2022-02 Issued on: November 29, 2022 Issued by: John Bittorf, Water Resources Coordinator To: Watershed Municipalities and Watershed Media
Message:
On Wednesday, a low-pressure system is forecast to move across the Great Lakes region. Strong west winds are expected to develop early Wednesday morning and are forecasted to peak overnight and into Thursday morning. Maximum sustained wind speeds of 40-50 km per hour with gusts up to 80 km per hour are expected. Offshore waves may exceed 3m in height.
Fortunately, water levels for Lake Huron have returned to near average conditions but there may still be a risk of shoreline erosion and near-shore flooding. The areas most affected within the Grey Sauble Watershed will be the western shorelines along Lake Huron.
This message will remain in effect until 12:00 pm on Friday December 2nd, unless local conditions warrant further updates. The Grey Sauble Conservation Authority (GSCA) will continue to monitor conditions and will provide an update if required.
Message Number: 2022-01 Issued on: March 16, 2022 (1:30pm) Issued by: John Bittorf, Water Resources Coordinator To: Watershed Municipalities and Watershed Media
Message:
With the forecasted warmer weather and potential for rain this weekend, the existing snowpack will be significantly reduced. Snow cover (water content) is highly variable throughout our watersheds with some areas having up to 12.5 cm (5”) of water content. The majority of the watersheds are between 5 cm (2”) and 7.5 cm (3”).
As the snow begins to melt, soils become saturated under the snow and additional snow melt will quickly run off into ditches, streams and rivers. Flows will increase and may reach average/normal spring runoff levels later this week. Although unusual flooding is not expected at this time, seasonal flooding of low-lying areas will likely occur.
There is a concern regarding the potential for ice jams. We are still noting some ice cover throughout our watersheds. The increase in water levels will likely mobilize the ice sheets and they may cause jamming and localized flooding.
Grey Sauble Conservation Authority would like to remind everyone that during spring runoff events, potential conditions exist that could pose a risk to personal safety. High flows, unsafe banks, melting ice or other factors could be dangerous for residents and pets. Stay back from riverbanks and away from fast moving water.
Grey Sauble staff will continue to monitor the weather and the flows and provide additional updates as needed. Watershed residents can access snow, stream flow and rain gauge data through our Watershed Conditions page on our website: https://www.greysauble.on.ca/water-management/current-watershed-conditions/.
This Statement expires March 20th, 2022 at 12pm unless replaced by further updates.
