'We really weren't prepared for that': Torrential rain batters Cape Breton
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rain → prepare → Breton
Woman found dead in flooded area of Richmond County
A torrential downpour dumped more than 200 millimetres of rain on parts of Cape Breton over the weekend, destroying roads, culverts and bridges while triggering local states of emergency across three counties.
Nova Scotia RCMP say a 46-year-old Cape Breton woman reported missing Saturday morning was found dead later in the day in a flooded area of Richmond County.
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woman → find → County
First responders recovered the woman's body around 2:30 p.m. AT on Saturday near Kempt Road in Cleveland, N.S.
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responders → recover → Cleveland
Search crews initiated the response after her vehicle was discovered parked near her residence on the far side of a flooded bridge.
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vehicle → initiate → bridge
RCMP stated the death is not considered suspicious, though police did not elaborate.
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police → state → ?
When asked whether the death was related to the flooding, police had no comment.
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police → ask → comment
Richmond County Warden Lois Landry said she has never seen rain like this, comparing the destruction to hurricane damage.
"I think what struck me was [seeing] trees down on properties and across roads," she said.
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she → say → roads
"And we really weren't prepared for that.
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we → prepare → that
She said residents were expecting a typical rain event like those the island sees multiple times a year, but instead faced an unprecedented weather event.
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island → say → event
She is not the only one who thinks so.
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who → think → ?
"We've never experienced anything to this size and effect," said Terry Doyle, CAO for Port Hawkesbury, N.S.
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Doyle → experience → Hawkesbury
"And certainly, that's what I'm being told by others as well."
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I → tell → others
Doyle spoke Sunday from an emergency response co-ordination centre where representatives from Victoria, Inverness and Richmond counties and the province are gathered.
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representatives → speak → counties
A state of emergency was declared Saturday for those three counties.
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state → declare → counties
Doyle said the bulk of the damage is in Richmond County, around Bras d'Or Lake, where floodwaters have washed out numerous roads, bridges and driveways.
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floodwaters → say → roads
Emergency Management Minister Kim Masland said it's difficult to give residents a timeline for repairs, as officials are assessing damage and more rain is expected to fall.
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rain → say → damage
Dawn Chisholm, a resident of Richmond County, watched from her window as water crept up from a nearby creek closer to her home than she had ever seen.
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she → watch → home
She walked down her washed-out driveway and saw that roads were flooded a metre or more deep.
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roads → walk → driveway
"It was shocking when I got down to the end," Chisholm said.
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Chisholm → get → end
Now, her home is sandwiched between two roadblocks.
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home → sandwich → roadblocks
She said neighbours have helped each other with necessary supplies like food, but so far there has been no communication on when the road will be drivable.
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road → say → food
She is new to the community, but said she went through something similar when her apartment building flooded in Halifax during a rainstorm about three years ago.
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building → say → rainstorm
Chisholm said this "far outweighed what we went through" in Halifax.
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we → say → Halifax
She believes the state of emergency could have alerted residents earlier.
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state → believe → residents
Angel Frost shared that concern.
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Frost → share → concern
While her family in False Bay, N.S., was fine during the storm, she worried about her sister and two children in Arichat.
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she → worry → Arichat
They lost power for 11 hours and remained cut off by closed roads.
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"The state of emergency, I feel like it almost has been called too late," Frost said Sunday while the order was still in effect.
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order → feel → effect
Municipal leaders are urging residents to stay home so emergency crews can safely repair infrastructure.
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crews → urge → infrastructure
Inverness County Warden Bonny MacIsaac echoed that plea, warning drivers that covered roads may be structurally unstable beneath the water.
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roads → echo → water
Anyone who must travel should check provincial road conditions at 511 first, she added.
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she → travel → 511
Widespread washouts have left some residents stranded.
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washouts → leave → residents
Amanda Mombourquette, councillor for Richmond County District 4, expressed concern for vulnerable residents cut off from emergency services and essential groceries.
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Mombourquette → express → services
Nova Scotia Power's outage map showed more than 1,000 customers provincewide without power as of Sunday morning, primarily in Chéticamp, down from 5,000 earlier in the day.
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map → show → day
The outage number dropped below 200 Sunday evening.
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number → drop → 200
Coun. Claude Poirier, who represents Chéticamp on Inverness County council, said the local Legion and fire department have opened comfort centres so residents can charge devices or get hot drinks.
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residents → represent → drinks
Cape Breton municipalities have established a toll-free support line at 902-625-7888 for residents to report non-emergency storm issues.
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residents → establish → issues
In a statement posted to social media Saturday, Prime Minister Mark Carney said the federal government is ready to provide any needed support and is in contact with provincial officials.
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government → post → officials
The Aporia
