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Alberta NewsPhoto courtesy of thglobeandmail.comSoutheastern Alberta was drenched with 150 mm of rain on the Father’s Day weekend, followed by another 30 mm a few days later. The rains have raised the water levels of the rivers and caused more than 600 families to evacuate their homes. It closed a 60 km stretch of Highway 1 between Medicine Hat and the Alberta-Saskatchewan border. Damage to homes and farmland is expected to be in the millions and six communities have been declared disaster areas. The extend of the damage will only become known once the rain waters recede. Fortunately, Heights Baptist, the Canadian Baptist church in the area, is, as its name implies, on high ground. ”We’ve not been affected at all and haven’t had any calls from members of the church or the community for help,” said Art Hildebrand, the senior pastor at Heights. The intense rains in the semi-desert area around Medicine Hat are highly unusual. Medicine Hat is the sunniest city in Canada with weather that is usually very hot and dry. |
