Flood Water Safety

The City of Calgary is currently experiencing a local state of emergency due to incoming high river flows and potential flooding. There may be significant risks to Calgarians. The City’s waterways, including dry ponds and wet ponds, can be dangerous places. You can protect yourself and your family by following some simple steps:

River safety

• Keep a safe distance from fast-moving water.
• Parents, especially those who live near the Bow and Elbow Rivers should warn children of the dangers of fast-moving water. Fast moving water can also undermine and collapse steep riverbanks.
• Until the water flow decreases, canoeists and other people who use recreational watercraft should avoid the waterways.
• Cyclists and pedestrians should watch for low-lying areas where the rivers could cover pathways or adjacent roads. Many hazards exist and this could be extremely dangerous.
• Don't walk or drive on flooded streets or pathways.
• If water rises above the curbs on both sides of a street, do not walk or drive through the water because it may conceal open manholes. Take an alternative route. When water drains through an open manhole, it can create a strong current that can pull a person into the storm-drainage system. Avoid driving through a flooded underpass; it may strand you and your vehicle in rising water.
• Warn children to keep a safe distance from storm drainage outfalls.
• When water rushes through a storm water outfall and into a river or stream, it can be forceful enough to overpower and injure people. If you live near a large outfall, warn your children of this danger.
• Stay out of dry ponds and away from wet ponds when it rains. These wastewater facilities are designed to be dry 95 per cent of the time and used as sports fields. However, water is trapped and held in these areas to avoid flooding in surrounding neighbourhoods. During times of wet weather, use caution in and around these “dry” ponds as water could be released into the area without your knowledge.
• If you live near a dry pond or a wet pond, warn your children to stay away from it when it rains. Although dry ponds fill and drain slowly, most of them can reach a depth of one and a half meters (five feet) and remain that deep for several hours or longer. As for wet ponds, they can rise two meters (six and a half feet) above their normal levels.

  Safety in flooded areas  

• Don't walk or drive on flooded streets or pathways.
• If water rises above the curbs on both sides of a street, do not walk or drive through the water because it may conceal open manholes. Take an alternative route. When water drains through an open manhole, it can create a strong current that can pull a person into the storm-drainage system. Avoid driving through a flooded underpass; it may strand you and your vehicle in rising water.
• Warn children to keep a safe distance from storm drainage outfalls.
• When water rushes through a storm water outfall and into a river or stream, it can be forceful enough to overpower and injure people. If you live near a large outfall, warn your children of this danger.

 Dry and wet pond safety

• Stay out of dry ponds and away from wet ponds when it rains. These wastewater facilities are designed to be dry 95 per cent of the time and used as sports fields. However, water is trapped and held in these areas to avoid flooding in surrounding neighbourhoods. During times of wet weather, use caution in and around these “dry” ponds as water could be released into the area without your knowledge.
• If you live near a dry pond or a wet pond, warn your children to stay away from it when it rains. Although dry ponds fill and drain slowly, most of them can reach a depth of one and a half meters (five feet) and remain that deep for several hours or longer. As for wet ponds, they can rise two meters (six and a half feet) above their normal levels.