Shediac businesses continue to clean up following Fiona

With damage from Fiona still evident in every direction in Shediac, N.B., the race is on to clean up the mess left behind.

“The list is way too long,” said Pointe-Du-Chene Wharf general manager Victor Cormier. “I figure it's probably a couple million dollars in... the estimate, in my opinion, is going to be at least a couple of million to get things back to par."

Cormier says not only is the list long and pricey, but a time limit also exists.

"We need to get the repairs done this fall because spring is too busy for us,” he said.

Buildings have been pushed back, decks completely destroyed, and the long to-do list has already been started.

"Now, we're getting quotes and kind of engineering plans to make sure that when we do, do the repairs that we do it right. So hopefully, we won't get anymore Fionas, but I'm sure it'll be some down the road so we want to make sure that the wharf is ready."

Not far away, water damage is the main culprit at the Shediac Bay Yacht Club. This included water inside buildings and decks that drifted from their original location according to Shediac Bay Yacht Club Manager, Gerry O’Brien.

"We're still evaluating all of the damages to the patios and the decks and all that stuff, so there's some stuff in buildings that we need to get replaced... like heaters, you know, files that were flooded. We're still in the process of drying all of [the] things,” he said.

O’Brien says the club was better prepared this year after dealing with Hurricane Dorian in 2019, getting most of the boats out of the water before Fiona hit.

"It could have been much worse. But I think, you know, the new normal is we have to get prepared and to get prepared if it looks like it's going to be a direct hit, or a close hit, you need to get the boats out."