REGINA — Crews were working Tuesday to repair a stretch of the Trans-Canada Highway damaged by flooding as areas in southern Saskatchewan and Alberta began to mop up from heavy rains.
A transportation official said it could be the weekend before traffic flowed again on part of the highway that was wiped out near Maple Creek, Sask., near the Alberta boundary.
Both westbound lanes and one of the eastbound lanes gave way when streams and creeks rose quickly and sent water rushing over the highway.
Doug Wakabayashi, a spokesman for Saskatchewan Highways, said crews hauled in about 7,000 tonnes of material to help rebuild the eastbound lane. The temporary fix would allow at least a single line of traffic in each direction.
He said the repair work was progressing nicely, but it could be a month before the westbound lanes are rebuilt and the highway completely reopens.
Repairs also need to be made to the Alberta side of the Trans-Canada near Medicine Hat, Wakabayashi said.
The highway wasn’t the only transportation route affected. CP Rail spokesman Mike Lovecchio said the company was having to shore up its main line at several points between Maple Creek and Medicine Hat. The work meant trains were being rerouted as far away as Saskatoon.
Lovecchio didn’t know how long repairs would take or how many trains would end up having to go a different way.
The deluge topped the rails in some instances, he said, but the biggest problem was that track stability was compromised by ground saturation.
Southeastern Alberta was standing down Tuesday after more rain predicted for the previous night barely materialized.
“We are in the recovery and restoration phase,” said Ron Robinson, Medicine Hat fire chief. “The update on the current situation is the water levels of the South Saskatchewan River and creek systems are all decreasing.
“Of the predicted rainfall, the Medicine Hat area received five millimetres. Therefore, there would be no significant impact to the water systems.”
Residents of Irvine, a community about 30 kilometres to the east of Medicine Hat, were also cleaning up flooded basements and debris-strewn yards. A flash flood on Friday forced dozens of people from their homes and stranded others. Some had to be rescued by boats or a helicopter.