Flooding: We have talked about our weird weather patterns previously and what has been going on in our area.
Yesterday, numerous Rural Municipalities flooded – some claiming “State of Emergencies” and others are close.
Roads have washed out, train tracks are affected in places, some small bridges have been taken out with the force of the water, countless people are dealing with water in their homes, shops, buildings, we are water logged.
Rivers and lakes are high and spreading out, and there is more rain projected on the horizon…
In 2011, this area had a bad flood year – there were many “States of Emergencies” and numerous people affected.
I was contracted out to a Rural Municipality in the area to complete all the Disaster Financial Assistance.
We had numerous roads wash out, culverts blow out and many areas to deal with in a 12 x 18 mile area. It was nothing like I had witnessed before. I got my spreadsheet made, figured out what we would require to be fully functional again and started making phone calls to get quotes on absolutely everything that would be needed.
We took pictures and documented everything.
With those photos, I then went to Google earth and got the layout of before the flood and added those photos as well.
Then we had a chance to look at things and see if certain changes could be made to prevent this from happening again, if we made some adjustments to the culverts – for example: if we purchased a larger one, flat bottom one or round one, or if using a plastic one that was smooth on the inside was the answer.
I had absolutely everything laid out and documented, and prices for everything. I did up a printed copy and an electronic copy for the government officials involved and set up meetings with them.
We had the meetings, questions were asked and answered or found out – we had the right people in the room, so that they wouldn’t have to return and then sent them on their way with the information in hand.
It was highly beneficial to have things organized, documented and a thought-out plan in place prior to the meeting. We did not have issues with the suggestions and in fact were able to make some necessary changes to be proactive instead of reactive and hopefully, in a similar situation, they will not flood again.
We were fortunate to receive the proposed funding and began about the work to fix and repair the area.
In the end, we had to add some things, ended up getting better pricing on items and got our municipality up and running in a very reasonable amount of time.
By doing things this way, we were able to do things with the R.M not having to come up with the funding. It was highly beneficial and paid off. I’m not saying that it was any less stressful of a process, but it was done in a way that assisted with getting the funding beforehand, instead of waiting to receive your assistance from the government program. I have heard to this day, there are still people waiting for their funds from the 2011 flooding and now we are going through it again…
If you are having to go through this, take photos, over document everything, find out costs and have things ready to go for the meetings. It goes so much smoother when you make the time to do this. Trust me, not everyone was on board with what I was asking, but they did it – the guys working on the roads didn’t feel like getting out and taking photos on the iPads provided prior to grading and making things better. In fact, it was the last thing they wanted to do… It was time consuming at a time where time was precious and they were already working round the clock. However, the end result showed our work and our effort and they saw the benefit once accomplished.
Take the time to get the necessary information together to make your claim – it’s the end result you are looking for.
Flooding is not fun, I have had water issues to deal with personally. Take that extra moment to grab your phone and take some photos. Once the water has been dealt with, get the information together and starting putting your claim together. Then start filling out the necessary paperwork and set up some meetings.
Questions to Ponder:
Do you need assistance?
Can you get assistance from certain government programs?
Do you have documentation and photos to assist with the process?
Are you making these things a priority for further down the road?
Be accurate in your description and wording.
I wish you well as you may be dealing with this and in your pursuit of funding assistance.
It is not an easy time - it is very tiring, stressful and financially draining.
