The Saguenay flood () was a series of flash floods on July 19 and 20, 1996 that hit the Saguenay–Lac-Saint-Jean region of Quebec, Canada. It was the biggest overland flood in 20th-century Canadian history.
History
Problems started after two weeks of constant rain, which severely engorged
,
and reservoirs. The Saguenay region is a geological
graben, which increased the effect of the sudden massive rains of July 19, 1996. In two days, rainfall accumulated that was "equivalent to the volume of water that tumbles over
Niagara Falls in four weeks."
Over of water flooded parts of
Chicoutimi and La Baie, completely levelling an entire neighbourhood. Estimates reach in damages, a cost made greater by the disaster's occurrence at the height of the tourist season. Post-flood enquiries discovered that the network of dikes and
dams protecting the city of Chicoutimi was poorly maintained. In the end, 488 homes were destroyed, 1,230 damaged, 16,000 people evacuated, and 10 people died. An additional 2 people died in the
produced by the incredible rain.
Legacy
A small white house (referred to in
French language as
La petite maison blanche, "The little white house") stood nearly unharmed in Chicoutimi while torrents of water rushed in on every side, and it became the symbol of surviving the flood. It was owned by Jeanne d'Arc Lavoie-Genest. With its foundation still highly exposed after the flooding, it has been preserved in Saguenay (the city name has changed) as a historical park and
museum commemorating the flood.
An unexpected effect of the flood was to cover the heavily contaminated at the bottom of the Saguenay River and Ha! Ha! Rivers with of new, relatively clean sediments. Because of this, research has shown that the old sediments are no longer a threat to and the river will not have to be dredged and treated to control contamination.
The Ha! Ha! Pyramid was created to memorialise the flood.
External links
