Coldwater River to be temporarily rerouted

When the flood waters partially receded on Wednesday, City Officials noticed that the Coldwater River had carved out a new path down a section of Pine street. While the original plan was to leave the river in its new position, the City now plans to at least temporarily reroute the river back.

“Activities with the wastewater plant were severely complicated by the shifting river,” said EOC Communications Manager Greg Lowis. “Rerouting the river is an enormous challenge and we still have no long-term plan in place and those conversations haven’t even begun yet.”

“As a temporary measure, Public Works has been working with the Environment Ministry, Fisheries, FLINDROD, and the plan is to create a temporary dike using a tiger dam, which using the water from the river itself to inflate and direct the water back onto its former course,” added Lowis.

On Sunday, the Coldwater Indian Band made prayers and offerings to the River as part of the rerouting process.