Some 200 soldiers began helping residents of a small Manitoba town hurl sandbags Saturday, in a last-ditch effort to curb the threat of the rising Souris River.
The troops started their work in the flood-stricken town of Souris early Saturday afternoon, joining the approximately 150 people already racing to bolster dikes before the Souris River is expected to crest in the area on July 5.
Manitoba Premier Greg Selinger said he authorized the request for military personnel after the town asked the province for help.
"People in the community have been doing their best and we need to be sure we do all we can to prepare," Selinger said in a statement released Saturday, announcing that soldiers would be deployed from CFB Shilo.
Meanwhile, the mayor of another small southwestern Manitoba town is praying that bolstered dikes and stacked sandbags are enough to stop the rising river from devastating his area.
Evacuation alerts have been issued for 1,000 residents in the town of Melita, near Brandon, Manitoba.
When water levels rose by almost 15 centimetres on Friday, officials were forced to close Highway 3, a major route in and out of town.
The town has also built more dikes to combat the rising waters, leaving Melita mayor Bob Walker to conclude the only thing conerned residents can do now is wait and hope that the barriers hold up.
"I think everybody can see that we've done what's possible," Walker told 麻豆影视 Channel.
"Right now to the good Lord I'd say, just keep the winds down and if they're blowing, blow from the right direction."
In the nearby town of Wawanesa, residents are racing to staunch the rising river water with sandbags.
With water levels expected to rise 2.5 metres, authorities in Wawanesa have already evacuated 17 homes, the town's personal care home and the hospital.
Dozens of out-of-towners poured into the small village on Friday to help make sandbags and build a dike before the floodwaters arrive. The helpers are being paid $15 an hour for their work.
The townspeople have been sandbagging and digging the dike, which is nearly two kilometres long and up to three metres high in spots, for the last week.
"None of us have ever dealt with anything that even remotely compares," Wawanesa Mayor Bruce Gullett said.
"We got a lot of people that aren't used to slugging sandbags eight to 10 hours a day and we're wearing them out."
Officials have warned that more evacuations in Wawanesa may be necessary.
With files from CTV Winnipeg
