The city where I live is experiencing one of those “once in
a hundred years” climate events. We have had a very wet spring and the last few
days we have had almost biblical amounts of rainfall. The rain has fallen over
a very large area and combined with the spring/summer snow melt, the runoff
from the mountains has contributed to cause our current flood situation.
It isn't just Calgary ,
but all of the satellite towns around us have been affected and the worst of
those was High River High
River Alberta
have just finished the seeding of their crops and more than likely those seeds
have been washed away. There have been roads and bridges washed away, thousands
of homes, vehicles and personal belongings will have been destroyed due to the
flooding. The cost both personal and financial is mind boggling.
The Prime Minister of Canada, the Premier of Alberta and the
Mayor of Calgary took a helicopter tour of the areas affected by the floods.
They are all from Calgary so they
do have a personal connection to the lands that are under water. I can't help
but think that it is also a very good photo opportunity for all of them. The
Prime Minister has been embroiled in a financial scandal that could use the
emergency in Alberta as a cool
down period. The Premier is also finding it difficult to get the voters to back
her and her government wholeheartedly. The Mayor is just a concerned guy that
has his cities best interests at heart. I like Mayor Nenshi, so I am a little
biased.
Even if all three had the best of intentions I would think
that the helicopter time would be better used by someone that could co-ordinate
the rescue and protection efforts. I am sure that if they didn't take the tour
of the flooded areas then some dimwit like me would criticize them for not
caring. You really can't win in politics, but you can get rich and that will
be in another blog sometime. The army did get called out and they rolled into
town this afternoon at just about the same time as Prime Minister Harper flew
into the province. They could have killed two birds with one stone if only they
had brought guns and made a side trip to the airport. They will be a great help
during the rescue operation and in the days to follow the flooding helping get
things organized so we can get our lives back to normal as soon as possible.
Where I live, we had rain, but no flooding. Thank God! Well,
thank us too, because we choose to buy a house that the developers didn't build
on a floodplain Quite a few of the areas that have been flooded in Calgary
are located beside the Elbow or the Bow rivers and belong to some of the
richest people in the city. I feel for their loss, but there is a part of me,
the jealous part I suspect, that has a hint of a smile at their expense. I just
read that the insurance will more than likely not cover the damage to homes and
property. It’s an ACT OF GOD and therefore not covered. If you believe in God, isn't everything and act of God? I really hate insurance companies! Hopefully
since it has been declared a disaster area, the government will help those most
in need when rebuilding their lives.
We are expecting another day of rain, but the rivers have
crested and in a day or two the city and towns in the area will be able to get
a better idea of the damage and how to go about prioritizing the repairs to
homes and infrastructure.
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