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A northern Alberta community southeast of Fort McMurray has been placed on evacuation alert as the thawing Clearwater River begins to overflow its banks.
In an evacuation alert Tuesday, emergency officials said everyone in the community of Draper, Alta., should be prepared to leave on short notice due to increased overland flooding.
In an advisory issued shortly after 8:30 a.m. Tuesday, municipal officials with the Regional Municipality of Wood Buffalo said the alert has been issued due to the potential of an ice jam flooding event along the Clearwater River.
An ice jam on the Athabasca River near Fort McMurray is causing water levels along the Clearwater River to rise, officials said.
Water levels could impact egress and access on Garden Lane and River Bend Close, the advisory warned. As of Tuesday morning, some sections of Garden Lane were already washed out, submerged in icy water.
Draper, a small rural neighbourhood in the Regional Municipality of Wood Buffalo, has a population of 137 residents and is located about 12 kilometres southeast of Fort McMurray along the Clearwater River.
It is among a handful of neighbourhoods across the Fort McMurray region that have been bracing for possible flood damage as spring thaw triggers ice jams which threaten to trigger flooding as ice in local rivers flows north.
The rise in water levels is being closely monitored on the rivers. Provincial river forecasters have issued an ice jam watch.
Everyone in Draper is advised to prepare a 72-hour emergency kit , make an emergency plan and closely monitor emergency advisories issued by local emergency officials.
Officials urged residents in the area to review their home insurance policies and to notify emergency responders if they are aware of any neighbours who may need assistance evacuating.
River breakup each spring often brings the risk of flooding, and emergency officials have been watching closely in recent days as the Clearwater and Athabasca Rivers have begun to swell.
A series of ice jams in the region is being closely monitored by helicopter and drone, including an ice jam approximately 20 kilometres long which has formed in the Athabasca River upstream from the Thickwood area of Fort McMurray.
In an advisory issued Monday, RMWB officials cautioned ice conditions may change with little warning in the coming days, especially as temperatures warm.
A history of flooding
Fort McMurray has a long history of flooding, primarily caused by ice jams at the confluence of the Athabasca and Clearwater rivers. While the region has recorded many floods over the decades, the flood of April 2020 was considered the most damaging in more than a century.
That spring, a massive 25-kilometre ice jam on the Athabasca River caused water levels to rise dramatically, temporarily displacing about 13,000 residents and damaging more than 1,200 structures in the downtown area.
