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Environment Canada has issued a freezing rain warning for Haldimand County. Strong wind gusts up to 70 km/h coupled with ice accretion on tree branches and power lines could cause power outages

Precipitation is expected to move into the area late tonight or early Sunday morning. The precipitation will begin as freezing rain and change to freezing drizzle or drizzle early Sunday afternoon. For areas closer to the lake shore the transition from freezing rain to drizzle will occur late Sunday morning.

Several millimeters of ice accretion are possible over these regions with some areas possibly receiving a few centimeters of snow and ice pellets in addition to the freezing rain.

Travel may quickly become hazardous during this event. Haldimand County Emergency Services is advising residents to drive with caution during this event and pay close attention to changing weather conditions.

“There are a few key actions residents can take to stay safe & minimize safety risks during a power outage. Retrieving your flashlight and ensuring your cellular devices are charged are a good first step,” said Jason Gallagher, Manager of Emergency Services & Fire Chief.

If the power goes out, residents should:

• Turn off all tools, appliances and electronic equipment, and turn the thermostat(s) for the home heating system down to minimum to prevent damage from a power surge when power is restored.
• Leave their freezer and fridge shut unless it is absolutely necessary to open them (a full freezer will keep food frozen for 24 to 36 hours if the door remains closed).
• Listen to your battery-powered or wind-up radio for information on the outage
• Make sure their carbon monoxide detector is working. If it is hard-wired to the house’s electrical supply, ensure it has a battery powered back-up.
• Protect sensitive electrical appliances such as TVs, computer, and DVD players with a surge-protecting power bar.
• Use proper candle holders. Never leave lit candles unattended and keep out of reach of children. Always extinguish candles before going to bed.

More emergency preparedness tips and resources are available at HaldimandCounty.ca/emergency-preparedness.

Today, Enbridge Gas Inc. and Haldimand County Fire Department announced they are working to improve home safety and bring fire and carbon monoxide-related deaths down to zero.

Haldimand County Fire Department received 156 combination smoke and carbon monoxide alarms through Project Zero, – a public education campaign that will provide more than 9,100 alarms to residents in 40 municipalities across Ontario.

This year, Enbridge Gas Inc. invested $275,000 in Project Zero, and over the past 11 years, the program has provided more than 44,356 alarms to Ontario fire departments.

When properly installed and maintained, combination smoke and carbon monoxide alarms help provide the early warning to safely escape from a house fire or carbon monoxide exposure. Carbon monoxide is a toxic, odourless gas that is a by-product of incomplete combustion of many types of common fuels.

“Carbon monoxide is known as the ‘silent killer’ for a reason, and we have proof that prevention saves lives. We know that the best way to avoid carbon monoxide exposure is to eliminate it at the source by properly maintaining fuel-burning equipment, and that the alarms are a critical second line of defense to protect against carbon monoxide poisoning,” says Murray Costello, Director, Southwest Region Operations, Enbridge Gas Inc.

“The objective of Project Zero is to deliver combination smoke and carbon monoxide alarms to Ontario communities who need them the most,” said Jon Pegg, Ontario Fire Marshal and Chief, Emergency Management. “It’s a program that municipal fire departments can adopt to help educate their communities about the requirement for all Ontario homes to have a CO alarm if they have a fuel burning appliance or an attached garage.”

“We are extremely grateful for Enbridge Gas Inc.’s support in promoting the dangers of carbon monoxide and donating 156 alarms. Every year when we conduct our door-to-door smoke detector & CO alarm inspection campaign, we encounter residents who cannot replace these critical items due to economic or mobility reasons. Enbridge’s support will enable us to expand our public education/assistance program and offer more alarms to those in need – at no cost,” says Jason Gallagher, Haldimand County Fire Chief & Manager of Emergency Services.

From left to right:

Richard Geerdink, Fire Prevention Officer – Haldimand County
Rodger Hill, Deputy Fire Chief – Haldimand County
Jason Gallagher, Fire Chief / Manager of Emergency Medical Services – Haldimand County
Nick Klip, Operations Manager – Enbridge Gas Inc.
James Schofield, Manager of Stations Measurement Corrosion – Enbridge Gas Inc., Southeast Region Operations
John Metcalfe, Ward 2 Councillor – Haldimand County

Haldimand County Emergency Services has issued some important safety reminders for residents ahead of Carbon Monoxide Awareness month. Carbon Monoxide is known as the silent killer because it is a colourless, odourless and tasteless gas.

November was declared Carbon Monoxide Awareness Month in 2013 following the passing of the Hawkins Gignac Act. The Hawkins Gignac Act is named in honour of the Hawkins family — Laurie, Richard, and their children, Cassandra and Jordan — who were tragically killed by carbon monoxide poisoning in their Woodstock home. The tragic outcome of carbon monoxide poisoning was felt locally – in Cayuga – after 12 year old Nolan Young passed away due to CO poisoning. Since his death, the Young family has tirelessly worked to spread awareness of this silent killer.

“Carbon monoxide is a real risk because you can’t see it or smell it or taste it. The only way to mitigate tragedy and protect your family is to have functioning carbon monoxide alarms in your household,” said Richard Geerdink, Fire Prevention Officer for Haldimand County. “If your home uses fuel-burning appliances like natural gas, propane, wood or oil, you need to have a carbon monoxide alarm outside of all sleeping areas and it’s recommended to have a carbon monoxide alarm on every level of your home,” he continued.

Residents with attached garages are required to have alarms installed as well. Appliances that are rarely used over the summer months may develop leaks or blockages and cause carbon monoxide to accumulate inside the home. “It’s so important to have appliances and fireplaces inspected by a professional when the colder temperatures begin,” Geerdink stated.

Symptoms of carbon monoxide poisoning mimic flu symptoms – headache, feeling nauseous, dizziness and weakness.

Residents who are unsure of where or how to install a carbon monoxide alarm are encouraged to contact Haldimand’s Fire Prevention Bureau for assistance. Residents who are unable to afford a carbon monoxide alarm may also contact the Fire Prevention Bureau as assistance is available.

By Scott Robertson, Senior Water Resources Engineer, Grand River Conservation Authority
Published with permission from the Grand River Conservation Authority

The Great Lakes drainage basin covers an area of approximately 766,000 km², with the freshwater volume stored within the lakes typically quoted as representing about 18 per cent of the world supply and 84 per cent of North America’s supply. Water levels in the Great Lakes are affected by many natural factors, the primary ones being precipitation, evaporation, runoff, groundwater, ice, aquatic growth, meteorological disturbances and tides. A very small measure of human control exists throughout the Great Lakes system through various locks, canals, and dams, with operational considerations involving aspects such as mitigation of flooding, marine transportation and hydroelectric power generation. None of these controls has more than a negligible impact on Lake Erie water levels.

To some extent, lake levels are somewhat predictable and fluctuate on a range of time scales, from multi-year and seasonal at a lake-wide scale, down to hours, minutes, and even seconds at a local scale. A summary of current basin-wide conditions includes:

• Lake Superior exceeded its seasonal record levels for May and remained above record for 4 months, before dipping to just below record to start September.
• The Lake Huron-Michigan system, which effectively “shares” a water level, approached record levels in early summer, but has since receded slightly, entering September only 8 cm below its record for the date, as set in 1986.
• Lake Erie surpassed both seasonal and historically-recorded levels, previously set in the mid-1980s and late 1990s, in early May. Levels have remained well above both seasonal and historically-recorded highs through the entirety of the summer to the present. As of September 19, they remained 8 cm above the previous record-high for the date, set in 1986, but are slowly declining.
• On the heels of record-breaking flood levels in 2017, Lake Ontario exceeded even those heights in early June and remained at record-breaking levels through the first week of August.
• More information about the Great Lakes, characteristics and conditions is available on the Fisheries and Oceans Canada website at https://waterlevels.gc.ca.

Lake Erie Conditions

So, what does all this mean for Lake Erie and the Grand River shoreline communities of Dunnville and Port Maitland? High levels create conditions ripe for flooding and erosion, potentially altering the shoreline, damaging property or municipal infrastructure, and even potentially injury or loss of life.

While the record-high day-to-day levels resulted in some minor nuisance flooding in very low-lying areas at its peak in May and June, the more significant concern on Lake Erie relates to wind-driven storm surge weather events. Of all the Great Lakes, the shallow character of Erie leaves it particularly susceptible to such conditions.

Winds of sufficient speed and duration are able to “push” water from the west end of the lake to the east end, temporarily raising levels at Dunnville and Port Maitland by up to two metres for hours at a time, before relenting and allowing the water to slosh back to the west end of the lake, like in a bathtub. On top of these storm surges, isolated waves of up to another two metres could also occur, with increased likelihood during such wind events.

The lowest level of flooding starts to occur at Port Maitland at a lake elevation of approximately 175.5 m, with the highest instantaneous level ever recorded at 176.62 m (December 2, 1985). As of September 12, 2019, the stable lake level is 174.88 m, meaning that it would only require a relatively moderate storm surge wind event to initiate low-level flooding along some coastal areas. A significant event could result in near record or even record flooding.

On the plus side, levels are continuing to recede at approximately seasonal rate, but on the negative side, the types of weather events that create storm surges as described above occur primarily in the fall and winter seasons. There remains a lot of water flushing through the upper Great Lakes system draining into Lake Erie, which means that levels, through dropping nicely, will likely remain unseasonably high throughout this crucial period, resulting in a higher potential for lakeshore flooding and erosion along the Lake Erie shoreline. A Lake Erie Conditions Statement – High Lake Level Outlook has been in place since October 2018, and is expected to remain in place for the coming months.

Much will depend on how dry the next couple months are, how much the lake levels can continue to drop, and how kind Mother Nature decides to be with respect to westerly or south-westerly winds.

Find out how to prepare for floods via the Haldimand County Emergency Services and GRCA websites.

In 2018, Haldimand County, the Grand River Conservation Authority (GRCA), Long Point Region Conservation Authority (LPRCA) and the Niagara Peninsula Conservation Authority (NPCA) initiated a study to update the Lake Erie shoreline flood, erosion and dynamic beach hazard mapping.

The majority of the work to update the hazard mapping to current mapping and technical standards is now complete. The second of two Public Education Centres (PEC) is scheduled to take place on Saturday, September 21, 2019 from 9:30 to 11:30 a.m. at the Selkirk Centennial Community Centre (34 Main Street West, Selkirk). The first PEC took place in September 2018.

The PEC will follow an open house format. There will be no formal presentations; however, the session will provide an opportunity for landowners and members of the public to learn about the findings of the study, as well as contribute their knowledge of local conditions. County and Conservation Authority staff will be available to answer questions and all members of the public interested in the project are welcome to attend.

This is a technical study to update hazard mapping. Updates to conservation authority shoreline management plans or policies, Haldimand County’s Emergency Response Plan and Official Plan are outside the scope of this project.

The PECs for this project will meet the requirements for public consultation for any resulting amendments to regulated area mapping of Ontario Regulations 150/06, 155/06 and 178/06 made under the Conservation Authorities Act.

Consistent hazard mapping across conservation authority jurisdictions is required to support land use planning and permitting decisions in at-risk communities and flood and erosion-related response and mitigation planning. Current shoreline hazard mapping for the County within LPRCA and GRCA jurisdictions was prepared in the late 1980s – early 1990s, while the mapping within the NPCA jurisdiction was updated in 2010.

The project will also update municipal risk assessment information for shoreline flooding, including inventorying at-risk infrastructure and estimating damage potential. It is anticipated the project will be completed by early 2020.