On Toronto Islands, lawns are now small lakes
CBC News | Posted: May 5, 2017 2:52 PM | Last Updated: May 6, 2017
Ferry service restricted to residents and emergency personnel
One of the areas hardest hit by the heavy rains is the Toronto Islands.
In addition to being a city park, the islands are home to about 700 people.
The combination of the islands' low elevation, heavy rains and wind-blown waves off Lake Ontario left much of the island under water this morning. The water turned lawns into small lakes and covered many of the park's paths and beaches.
On Friday, residents and city crews worked together on Ward's Island to build sand bag barriers to protect homes from flooding.
"We could have some serious flooding here as we did apparently back in 1974," said Mayor John Tory on Friday.
CBC Toronto's Lauren Pelley spent the morning on the island and gathered these photos and video.
The city has restricted access to the island to residents and emergency personnel.
Last night the city kept a ferry at Ward's Dock in case it was needed for an evacuation. Also, students at the island school were sent to another school in Toronto for the day.
Residents on the Toronto Islands will be notified via TOFerry@toronto.ca if the ferry is brought into service for storm evacuation.
The low elevation and multiple water features on the Toronto islands mean structures there could be vulnerable to flooding, according to Nancy Gaffney a waterfront specialist with the Toronto and Region Conservation Authority.
Environment Canada has updated its rainfall warning, saying Toronto could receive up to 70 millimetres through Saturday.
The rain that began Thursday afternoon continued to fall Friday, but is expected to taper off into the weekend.