STANLEY, N.B. -- Residents of a small New Brunswick village who were forced from their homes last week after a large ice jam caused a river to spill its banks were expected to return on Monday, but the threat of more flooding remained.
Village of Stanley Mayor Mark Foreman said most of the water had subsided on Sunday and officials were working to pump water out of the basements of four homes whose families had to be relocated.
Foreman said a number of homes suffered considerable damage, especially those with finished basements.
"They're the ones that were hit the worst. Pretty well everything is a total loss," said Foreman on Sunday. "I went to (a home) this morning and I see a mountain in their yard of couches, furniture, carpet -- you name it, it's sitting there."
Foreman said three vacant homes were also affected by the flooding in the village about 45 kilometres north of Fredericton.
He said officials will assess the flood damage to the homes and the rest of the community over the next several days.
On Thursday, about 35 residents living along the Nashwaak River were evacuated and schools were shut down because of fast-rising waters.
Town officials had said that at its peak, the main road and village centre were covered in about a half metre to just over a metre of water.
Foreman, who has lived in the community his whole life and has served on the village's council for nearly 20 years, said it's the worst flooding Stanley has ever seen. He said during other floods, ice jams release within a few hours, but this one was holding out.
Meanwhile, another ice jam downriver within about 10 kilometres was also posing a threat to the village of about 450 people, said Foreman.
"The threat is still real," said Foreman. "We're hoping for the best, but you never know."
