The Big Thaw: Burst pipes, water damage wreak havoc on Maritime homes
After one of the coldest days in years for most of the Maritimes, temperatures were up significantly Sunday.
Now, after the big chill came the big thaw -- and a flood of calls for local plumbers.
Trevor Wheatley started his work day early. He received 87 texts Saturday night and almost 50 phone calls Sunday morning. With frozen pipes now defrosting, many in the Halifax area and beyond are calling for help.
“I’ve got people from Windsor crying out because they can’t get anybody to service them and they’re willing to pay extra travel time and extra money,” said Wheatley.
It wasn’t just plumbers dealing with broken lines. The city’s water utility had to fix another broken main Sunday, after dealing with a number of them Saturday.
Fire crews were also run off their feet.
“It’s been a large volume of calls, probably four times what we would normally see during this time span,” said Chief Robert Hebb, District 3 Chief of Halifax Firefighters.
A representative of the firefighters union says it’s responded to 173 incidents between midnight and 2:30 a.m. Normally they see about a thousand a month.
Calls Sunday included fishing a vehicle out of the Bedford Basin after it slid down an icy boat launch. No one was hurt.
Hebb says many of the calls were about broken or leaking sprinkler and piping systems, along with some fires associated with heat sources to both residential and commercial properties.
“Today is pretty much a record day. We had well over 100 calls before 6:30 a.m. this morning. Most of those calls have involved sprinkler systems and alarm systems.”
It was also a busy day for power crews trying to reconnect more than 25,000 customers knocked off the grid. By 4:00 p.m. Sunday, the number was down to less than 3,800 across the Maritimes.
Frozen pipes are also an issue in the Moncton area, with water damage forcing two people from their apartments and the closure of Riverview Middle School on Monday and Tuesday.
A similar story in Charlottetown, where burst pipes forced two people out from a townhouse complex on Park Royal Court. The Red Cross also aided them with emergency lodging and meals.
“We’ve assisted more than 40 people over ten different communities. Several of those were house fires. Most of those were burst pipes and the resulting flooding.”
A short cold snap leaving a flood of clean-up work in its wake.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Senate expenses climbed to $7.2 million in 2023, up nearly 30%
Senators in Canada claimed $7.2 million in expenses in 2023, a nearly 30 per cent increase over the previous year.
Pedestrian, baby injured after stroller struck and dragged by vehicle in Squamish, B.C.
Police say a baby and a pedestrian suffered non-life-threatening injuries after a vehicle struck a baby stroller and dragged it for two blocks before stopping in Squamish, B.C.
Tom Mulcair: Park littered with trash after 'pilot project' is perfect symbol of Trudeau governance
Former NDP leader Tom Mulcair says that what's happening now in a trash-littered federal park in Quebec is a perfect metaphor for how the Trudeau government runs things.
Demonstrators kicked out of Ontario legislature for disruption after failed keffiyeh vote
A group of demonstrators were kicked out of the legislature after a second NDP motion calling for unanimous consent to reverse a ban on the keffiyeh failed to pass.
RCMP uncovers alleged plot by 2 Montreal men to illegally sell drones, equipment to Libya
The RCMP says it has uncovered a plot by two men in Montreal to sell Chinese drones and military equipment to Libya illegally.
Government agrees to US$138.7M settlement over FBI's botching of Larry Nassar assault allegations
The U.S. Justice Department announced a US$138.7 million settlement Tuesday with more than 100 people who accused the FBI of grossly mishandling allegations of sexual assault against Larry Nassar in 2015 and 2016, a critical time gap that allowed the sports doctor to continue to prey on victims before his arrest.
BREAKING Canucks goalie Thatcher Demko won't play in Game 2
The Vancouver Canucks will be without all-star goalie Thatcher Demko when they face the Nashville Predators in Game 2 of their first-round playoff series.
Man wanted in connection with deadly shooting in Toronto tops list of most wanted fugitives in Canada
A 35-year-old man wanted in connection with the murder of Toronto resident 29-year-old Sharmar Powell-Flowers nine months ago has topped the list of the BOLO program’s 25 most wanted fugitives across Canada, police announced Tuesday.
Doctors ask Liberal government to reconsider capital gains tax change
The Canadian Medical Association is asking the federal government to reconsider its proposed changes to capital gains taxation, arguing it will affect doctors' retirement savings.