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Floodwaters and road washouts in northern Saskatchewan continue to disrupt daily life for residents, delaying mail delivery, affecting access to emergency services and forcing people to use longer travel routes.
Shana Hansen, administrator for the Northern Village of Pinehouse, said some washouts on Highway 914, the only road offering direct access to the village, have been repaired, but the Smoothstone River bridge remains closed. The structure on Highway 165 collapsed more than two weeks ago due to ice jams and flooding.
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“It hasn’t affected us food-wise. We still got our freight truck last week on Tuesday, but as far as parcels and our mail, nothing has come in for about three weeks,” Hansen said.
“With family allowance this week, too, I don’t know if people will be getting their cheques to buy food and pay bills.”
Hansen said some residents have told her the lack of mail delivery has also affected their access to medication.
Since deliveries can’t go directly from La Ronge to Pinehouse on Highway 165, drivers are forced to go through Beauval, which adds an extra three hours to the trip.
Mike Bell, chief operations officer and vice-president of La Ronge EMS, said washouts and road closures have affected emergency response times in the region.
“We have one major road closure on Highway 165 to Pinehouse due to the bridge, and we don’t have direct access by ground and must fly into Pinehouse,” Bell said.
According to the Saskatchewan Ministry of Highways, a contractor has been secured to install a temporary structure over the Smoothstone River. Construction crews began work last week on road approaches connecting the existing highway to the temporary bridge site.
The ministry said the temporary bridge is expected to be completed by the end of the month, weather permitting. The structure will allow single-lane traffic only.
In the meantime, runoff continues to move rapidly through the area.
The Smoothstone River flows into the Churchill River system. According to the Saskatchewan Water Security Agency, the discharge readings on the Churchill River near Patuanak are 105 cubic metres per second, meaning more than 100,000 litres of water is moving downstream every second.
