Iqaluit rain 'just won't stop,' causes flooding in parts of city

The persistent rainfall in Iqaluit this month, which is already double the average for July, is now causing closures and flooding in some areas.

The City of Iqaluit issued an emergency closure Friday morning of the Bypass Road in Apex. It's shut down until further notice, due to overflow from the Apex River. The road is only open for emergency vehicles.

Iqaluit had no rain for the first week of July, but since July 9 the rainfall has been persistent, save for two days, says Environment Canada's senior climatologist Dave Phillips. 

And the rainfall this week is breaking records. 

From Thursday afternoon to Friday morning, approximately 72 millimetres of rain has fallen, says Phillips. The entire month of July typically sees about 52 millimetres.

"So you've had in one day what you see in one month," said Phillips.

The total amount for the month so far is 117 millimetres, and the rain is expected to keep falling.

"It's a weather system that's just hanging out like an unwanted house guest and just won't leave," said Phillips.

"It just keeps on raining and raining and just won't stop."

Phillips says the rain is not accompanied by thunderstorms.

"It's stationary, it's sluggish, it's slow moving," said Phillips, who added that the heat and humidity from the southeast and southwest is helping to feed the moisture.