Saskatoon cleaning up after heavy rain hammers city

The City of Saskatoon is cleaning up after as much as 75 millimetres of rain fell in some areas on Monday, leading to flooded streets and properties.

The city said Tuesday that crews had worked overnight to address flooded roadways. Crews popped manhole covers to release water that had hit the city's south, north and east sides especially hard.

A news release said that the majority of the city had been cleared by Tuesday morning, except for areas in the southeast that still had barricades for driver and pedestrian safety. The city said those barricades should be removed by the end of the day.

Good Samaritan helps people stuck in stranded car

The storm left cars stuck on roadways. Some residents went out of their way to lend a hand.

In Nutana Park, Sheikh Abdul Qadir came to the rescue of two older women whose car got stuck in the water.

"I noticed there was somebody stuck, so I had to help them. I told them to pick up their valuable items. I told them to come out and walk with me under the umbrella," Qadir told CBC.

Qadir said the area he was in was not too deep and the water was not rushing, so he felt safe wading in to help.

"It wasn't something dangerous or a big current or deep water you can see. Sometimes the cars are electronic these days, so people are unable to come out. Some people are elderly. They need help."

Qadir said he stuck around and warned other drivers not to enter the flooded street.

Samantha Krahn headed to her home in Nutana Park as the water was filling the streets.

"I could see just down the street that water was, not just flowing out of a manhole cover, but gushing out of it."

"I ran into the house and ran down into the basement to see if the sump pump was working. I could see water coming down on the floor and could see water coming through our basement window."

Krahn said water was also coming through her fireplace and into her living room.

She said her eavestroughs were not cleared so she climbed up her ladder in the rain. 

"I should have done my eavestroughs last week when I thought about it. I got those cleared and water was able to flow away from the house and that helped the water coming into the basement."

She said the damage is not too bad all things considered, but she expects the chimney will need some repairs.

"I've never seen rain like this in such a short period."

City asks residents to limit water use

The city said that with more rain on the way later this week, residents should try to limit their water use for the next few days.

"The system will need several days to recover from Monday's rainfall. Residents can help by not running washing machines, dishwashers or flushing toilets unless flushing is absolutely necessary," the city said in a news release.

The Rock Your Roots for Reconciliation event scheduled for Tuesday has been cancelled due to rain.

The city said the bus terminal at Market Mall is inaccessible, as are the fitness rooms at the Lions Arena and Lawson Civic Centre. Garbage collection in the Avalon area, impacted by Monday's storm, has been rescheduled to Wednesday.