Sewers will never handle severe storm rainfall 'no matter what we design,' says city engineer

The heavy rainfall from Tuesday night's storm has drawn the ire of some residents in Windsor-Essex and Chatham-Kent.

For Wizards of Walkerville owner Gabrielle Bleyendaal, the blame is on the City of Windsor for the major flood damage. 

"With sincerest and complete disrespect, go f--k yourself City of Windsor," Bleyendaal wrote in a Facebook post. "We need to hold them accountable for the mess they've caused, which we now have to clean up yet again." 

She said her business saw two feet of water enter the basement, adding the city hasn't spent enough money on needed infrastructure. 

This video was posted to the Wizards of Walkerville Facebook page in the aftermath of Tuesday night's storm:

"They're putting [funds] toward things that are unnecessary ... instead of actually creating proper infrastructure for storm season incidents like this," said Bleyendaal.

With the municipal election quickly approaching on Oct. 22, Bleyendaal said it's "time for people to get angry."

"You want to tell people to get involved in their community and get involved in decisions that are going to affect them," she said.

Replacing sewers 'just not practical,' says city engineer

Windsor-Essex saw a record-breaking amount of rain Tuesday, with a total of 47.5 mm — 38 mm of it from the evening storm.

According to deputy city engineer Dwayne Dawson, replacing sewers to accommodate water levels seen in Tuesday night's storm is "just not practical."

"[With] the amount of rainfall that we're getting in some of these short bursts or these intense storms, no matter what we design, the sewers are not going be handle that amount of water."

Dawson said the city is working on a "sewer master plan" to identify problem areas which are most prone to flooding. He said part of the plan will include rerouting water toward the river in a timely manner.

"The typical sewer is sized for a five-year rain event ... I don't know what this one would've been classified as, but it's well in excess of the five-year event."

He said 210 calls have come into 311 about basement flooding. Street sweepers are already out and picking up leaves, said Dawson.

Dawson said people should look into the city's downspout disconnection and basement flooding protection subsidy programs to assist with flood recovery, adding a special garbage pickup will take place for flooded homes.

Flooding around the city

A number of flooding reports were posted on social media in the aftermath of the storm.

Anne Kamath, who lives at the corner of Gladstone Avenue and Giles Boulevard, said Tuesday night marked their third basement flood just this year.

She said when her sewer drain overflows, it causes flooding in the street. Kamath added she has reported this to the city "but it's still blocked and doesn't drain."

Gary Quinn, owner of Dry-Rite Home Solutions, said his business has received a number of calls from people who have water entering their home through walls.

"I've had one customer call in saying their sub-pump couldn't keep up with the amount of water."