The flood watch for Minisinaqua Lake and low-lying areas of Gogama has been extend by a week, until 8:00am next Friday, May 10th.
“We’re just looking at the forecast, they’re predicting substantially warmer temperatures and we know that there’s still a substantial amount of snow pack. So we’re assuming there’ll be some melting occurring,” says Derek Farrer of the Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry.
Farrer is asking Gogama residents to be wary of the level of the lake, which surrounds the community on three sides, and to watch for updates from the MNRF.
“Cooler temperatures with the minimal precipitation over the last two to three days has been beneficial,” he recounts. “We haven’t seen a lot of rise (in the lake level), but with the warmer temperatures we do expect to see some rise in melting rates.”
DEFINITIONS OF FLOOD TERMINOLOGY
• WATERSHED CONDITIONS STATEMENT – FLOOD OUTLOOK: gives early
notice of the potential for flooding based on weather forecasts calling for heavy
rain, snow melt, high winds or other conditions
• WATERSHED CONDITIONS STATEMENT – WATER SAFETY: indicates that
high flows, melting ice or other factors could be dangerous for such users as
boaters, anglers and swimmers but flooding is not expected.
• FLOOD WATCH: potential for flooding exists within specific watercourses and
municipalities
• FLOOD WARNING: flooding is imminent or occurring within specific
watercourses and municipalities.
Source: Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry