Westman businesses race to clean up from deluge

Months after devastating flooding, businesses in western Manitoba are still rebuilding, with some racing against the clock to prepare for winter.

The Westman region was deluged by flash flooding in June and July, with several areas receiving between 100 and 150 millimetres of rain over a short period of time, causing chaos and forced evacuations. The recovery has been long — and costly.

Business owner Dan Grazier is tens of thousands of dollars in the hole for repairs to his shop in Swan River that flooded twice this summer.

His business, Grazier Custom Manufacturing Ltd., was inundated with floodwater in early June. He cleaned up the mess in the store’s front office and completed some renovations before a second deluge hit the community on Canada Day.

“We’ve spent so much money and we’re just scratching the surface here. Most of everything that we have paid for was for nothing, and we’re going to have to do it again,” Grazier said. “It’s been a rough couple months around here.”

The shop’s equipment was mostly spared from the flooding, but he’s still working on restoring the rest of his building and waiting for the province to begin distributing disaster financial assistance. Grazier and many other business owners are relying on provincial aid because they were not covered by insurance policies for overland flooding.

The province has said it has received more than 2,500 applications for disaster financial assistance. The deadline to apply is Oct. 8, and applicants will be able to submit invoices and expenses related to the storm until July 2027.

A separate flood recovery program is open to people from select communities who don’t qualify for disaster aid.

Summer flooding triggered 52 local states of emergency in Manitoba communities. More than 1,300 kilometres of roads were affected, including 100 highways and 63 damaged bridges.

Grazier became Swan River’s defacto business community spokesperson during the flooding, when communication was hindered by long-lasting power outages. When Premier Wab Kinew visited the region in the days following the flood, Grazier met with him to discuss the community’s concerns and needs.

“We’re still just doing our best to share good information and make sure everyone knows what’s going on,” Grazier said.

Contractors are working hard to restore homes and businesses, he said, but there’s only so much they can do.

“There’s only so many local guys here and they’re running to try and help everybody.”

Swan River’s local Co-op store has replenished its inventory of drywall and finishing supplies for those who are busy restoring their spaces. Manager Les Konjolka anticipates the materials will be in high demand throughout the fall and winter.

The first few weeks after the floods, the store had trouble keeping up with the run on cleaning supplies and generators. This time around, the manager says, they will be prepared.

“There’s been a lot of brave faces. You can tell people are tired and working hard at this process,” Konjolka said.

With winter around the corner, the Asessippi Ski Club is in a race to repair its flooded buildings before the first snowfall. The club uses the Asessippi Ski Area & Resort but is a separate entity from the facility. The club’s warmup shack and outdoor deck were damaged by the record floodwaters and high winds.

The resort is at the bottom of the Westman region’s floodplain and there was no protecting it from the June and July floods. The shack would have been swept away in the floodwater if it wasn’t for a timing cable that was buried underground a few years ago.

“Our scale really pales in comparison to people who have lost their businesses and their homes and all that. But it’s still kind of heartbreaking to see it destroyed,” said Nigel Simms, head coach of the club.

The shack is used by kids, parents and officials on training and race days, and the buildings are used during the club’s annual provincial alpine and freestyle skiing competitions.

If the repairs aren’t completed in time, it could impact the club’s season and events.

“We and the hill have an enormous challenge to get everything up and running before the season,” he said.

The resort also lost its pumphouse, which is needed to make snow for the hill.

Simms was ready to demolish what was left of the club’s hut, but said members have been working to build it back in time for opening day.

“They said, ‘No, we’re going to fix it. We’re going to bring this back,’ and it was pretty inspiring,” he said.

The club has started a Gofundme to raise funds for building materials. It had raised $450 of its $4,500 goal as of Monday afternoon.

nicole.buffie@freepress.mb.ca