A group of concerned Battleford citizens attended the Aug. 16 regular town council meeting to discuss flooding issues on 15 Street.
Don Wakelin, whose property was flooded during the July 22 hailstorm, as well as Aug. 8, presented council with photographs of the flooding and read a prepared statement.
"The flood was so great that water was running 15 to 16 inches deep in our yards," he said.
Wakelin said he believed poor engineering to be behind the recent rash of flooding, citing the recent development behind the affected lots and the new park.
"I've lived here for nine years and until this year, the water always ran south," said Wakelin.
Mayor Chris Odishaw promised to have the town engineer take a look at the problem, saying, "I'm a furniture guy, so I can't fix it."
Wakelin was worried about how long this would take, since he's concerned that if the problem is not solved by winter, thawing snow in spring would flood their yards once again.
"Most of us would end up with swimming pools in our basements and that's not acceptable," said Wakelin.
Odishaw replied, "At this point we don't have a plan," saying the problem would be looked at quickly now that it has been brought to his attention.
One woman, also a resident of the affected area, became upset at this comment, saying she'd advised the mayor and council of this issue two years ago, when the house behind her property was built, creating a four-foot height difference.
The woman, who asked not to be named as she is a professional in the community, said she was frustrated that the town "waited until our yards were destroyed before they took the problem seriously."
She added that SaskPower was concerned about her power box, which was submerged under water. This was also of concern to her, as she has younger children who were playing in the flooded yard and might have been injured.
Odishaw again promised to have an engineer look at the problem.
This came as little comfort to Wakelin, who said, "I'd like to know who this engineer is, and have a word with him."
Wakelin did remain reasonable about the problem, however, saying; "Things like this do happen from time to time, but the question is: how can it be corrected?"
