Many government buildings, schools and businesses in Fredericton, the capital city of Canada's eastern province of New Brunswick, were shutdown Thursday as St. John River spilled over its banks amid heavy rains.
Flooding reports are coming in from all along the river which winds through 670 km in the province, but some of the most dramatic images have come from Fredericton.
Residents could be seen paddling canoes and kayaks in downtown areas Thursday, as the river reached 8.34 meters, spilling its banks and looking more like a large lake in many places.
The current flooding may rival the province's 1973 disaster which caused Fredericton and the surrounding farmland great damage p to tens of millions Canadian dollars (1 Canadian dollar approximately equals 1 U.S. dollar then). The water level of St. John River reached a record high of 8.61 meters that year.
Floodwater covers a neighborhood in the north end of Fredericton, New Brunswick, May 1, 2008. Melting snow and heavy rain resulted in the St. John River flooding low lying communities throughout the province. Earlier Thursday, emergency officials said 1,300 homes were threatened by the flooding and 460 families had registered with the Red Cross and moved out of their houses.
A kayaker navigates around a row of parking meters in a flooded section of downtown Fredericton, New Brunswick, May 1, 2008. Melting snow and heavy rain resulted in the St. John River flooding low lying communities throughout the province. New Brunswick Premier Shawn Graham said in a news conference the worst was over for Fredericton, but the situation remained serious in the outlying areas.
The province's Emergency Measures Organization said the St. John River was expected to recede to 8.2 meters on Friday and 7.7 meters by Saturday.
A churchyard is filled with floodwater in the community of Sheffield, New Brunswick May 1, 2008. Melting snow and heavy rain resulted in the St. John River flooding low lying communities throughout the province. More than 100 mm of rain had fallen in northern New Brunswick, southern Quebec and the U.S. state of Maine earlier in the week before funneling into the St. John River.
The 673-kilometer river stretches from its headwaters in Maine to the Canadian port city of Saint John, draining 55,000 square kilometers of land.
Source: Xinhua
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