![]() ![]() ![]() The flooding was in the slow southbound lane and equipment was placed in the slow northbound lane. Trans Canada Highway traffic was reduced to one lane in each direction, said Saanich Const. ![]() “There was nowhere for the water to go so that’s why we actually brought in pumper trucks into the southbound lanes,” said Staite.Ĭompanies were called by the contractor to bring in four extra pumper trucks to deal with the overflow.Īt 5 a.m., Saanich police said they responded to a report of flooding on the road and helped with traffic control until flaggers arrived. “Even though we were pumping that water out of the ditch and into a temporary piping system that ultimately went off site, the water that was going into that temporary piping system, it was too much for it to handle. “Ultimately the ditches on the backside of the barrier just got overloaded with water,” said Staite. Holes in roadside barriers allowed water to drain into ditches. Staite described the underpass as bowl-like with rain flowing into it from each direction. One northbound lane remained closed, however, “for an additional couple of hours to assist with the staging of the additional pump trucks.” The ministry said Highway 1 southbound was open to traffic at 7:45 a.m. Given Tuesday’s flooding, pumper trucks will be on standby on the construction site in case of another significant rain or water event, said Staite. Once the interchange is finished, water from the highway will head into a storm-water retention pond in the middle of the loop ramp “so it will have much more capacity to be able to handle water like we saw yesterday and handle even more severe storm events where there’s significant amounts of rain.” “This event today has no bearing on the final configuration.” “The permanent system is meant to handle significant storm events there is ample capacity in there,” said Staite. “The permanent drainage system will safely and adequately handle a one-in-200-year flow without disruption to traffic or compromising the safety of those using the interchange,” said the ministry in a statement. The final drainage system will include a manhole-type drainage infrastructure and large pipes with a one-in-200-year-storm rating. “Unfortunately, the system got overwhelmed which wasn’t anticipated and they reacted swiftly to make sure that we could re-open the highway and make sure that there wasn’t standing water or pooling water in the slow lane.” “Obviously they were aware the rain was coming,” Janelle Staite, deputy regional director for the Ministry of Transportation, said of the forecasted storm. a contractor at the construction site for the $96-million Trans-Canada and Admirals Road/McKenzie Avenue interchange realized a mix of ditches and pumps was being overwhelmed by heavy rainfall. Heavy rains overwhelmed temporary drainage measures and flooded the new underpass at the McKenzie interchange on the Trans-Canada Highway Tuesday morning, backing up traffic for hours.Īt about 4 a.m. ![]()
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