Flood victims petition city for immediate help
Some residents evacuated from homes with nowhere to go
Some people in a Thunder Bay neighbourhood severely affected by flooding are feeling forgotten.
They live in a small residential area between Memorial Avenue and Fort William Road.
Michael Locke, who lives on Spofford Street, said the city needs to do more to take care of him and his neighbours.
"We need immediate help," he said. "Because none of us can cook, or wash. And we have no heat to keep warm."
Locke said the evacuation centre at the Neebing Arena is too far away, especially for older residents. The city is offering transportation from a staging area at the Slovak Legion in the east end.
Across the street from Locke, where 87-year-old Helen Grudics lives alone, the sewage backup was overwhelming. She said the furnishings in her home were "swimming … the carpet and the chesterfield and everything."
Because of the past water problems, Grudics said insurance won't cover her loss.
"I can't go to work. I got nothing," she said.
Down the street there are even bigger problems.
Rita Barrie has three children, and one of them isn't well. Her house has a dugout basement and on Wednesday night the dirt walls were weakening.
"And there's no insurance at all, there's no flood insurance, no nothing," Barrie said. "So we're on our own."
When the flooding is cleaned up and things are back to normal, Locke said he plans to get out of the flood-prone neighbourhood.
"I'm gonna sell and I'm gonna move," Locke said. "I don't want to go through this again."