Emergency Alert issued as flash flood forces evacuations

An emergency alert was issued on Friday night as hours of heavy rain caused significant flooding in the Halifax Regional Municipality (HRM).

The RCMP asked people to stay off the roads as it reported flooding on Hammonds Plains Rd., Lucasville Rd., Sackville Cross Rd. and parts of Sackville Dr. and Beaverbank Rd. Many other roadways, including Hwy 101 in the Halifax area, were also impacted by the deluge.

A new emergency alert issued just before midnight warned some roads in the Halifax area are impassable. Sackville Dr., Cobequid to Beaver Bank, Beaver Bank to Glendale, Hammonds Plains Rd. at Saint Margarent’s Bay Rd. and the 1600 block of St. Margaret’s Bay Rd. were reported to be unsafe.

Community centres have been opened at the Beaver Bank and Dartmouth East community centres.

The Atlantic coast of Nova Scotia was largely under a rainfall warning on Friday and Environment Canada had warned that tropical moisture associated with the wet system could lead to heavy downpours. Some areas reportedly received as much as 200mm of rain in just a few hours.

Earlier in the day, lightning was blamed for thousands of power outages in Halifax and along the South Shore as far as Clark’s Harbour.

Halifax Ground Search and Rescue teams were on the scene of serious flooding in Bedford on Friday night.

Halifax Water tweeted that customers were reporting damage to their driveways and culverts.

IMPACTS:

Per the department of transportation:

Hwy 101 (Inbound & Outbound) near the Highway 102 interchange is closed due to flooding, asking motorists to avoid Hwy 101.

Hwy 102 from Exit 3 to Exit 4C is closed due to flooding.

Hwy 103 (2km west of Exit 3) inbound has debris on the roadway and shoulder washouts. Motorists are advised to use caution.

Halifax-Bedford Bypass (inbound to the 101) is closed due to flooding. Motorists are asked to avoid the area