P.E.I. restoration companies swamped with flooding calls

Restoration companies on P.E.I. are busy as they help Islanders with damage due to heavy rain.

The heavy rain that poured down on the province over the past few days has caused significant damage for some. Businesses are trying to keep up with demand.

"We have basements that have over a foot of water in them," says Justin Clark, the co-owner of Steamatic, a restoration company on P.E.I.

Some foundation walls have caved in due to water damage, Clark said. He said that in some cases the water had nowhere else to go but basements with the ground still covered by ice.

"A lot of people on the Island have been overwhelmed with the rainfall," he said.

Clark is still trying to catch up with calls from Friday. He said there could be a bit of a wait, but he's trying to get to customers quickly.

"Probably looking at a couple of days, we really don't want to leave anyone any longer than a few days if we can get there sooner. By all means, we do our best."

Service Master is also dealing with calls across the Island.

Josh Farquharson, general manager of the company on P.E.I., said he has been getting calls since Thursday. He said staff is working pretty much 24 hours a day to catch up to demand.

The business has got calls about damaged roofs due to the rain, but most calls are for flooding in basements.

"I would say the volume would be around probably 30 to 40 calls since Thursday night, but we're still taking them," he said. 

"We do have a wait-list currently, but we're trying to get through them the best we can. We've had a couple of calls with people with like four or five feet of water in their basements over furnaces."

The calls aren't coming from a specific area. Farquharson said he's been getting calls from several communities.