Residents in northwest Toronto neighbourhood brace for flooding as warmer weather melts snow

Residents of a northwest Toronto neighbourhood say they are worried about water in their basements as snow on the streets begins to melt.

The residents in Rockcliffe-Smythe say they are already preparing for flooding as snow from two winter storms melts with warming temperatures. The city has said the neighbourhood is one of the most flood-prone areas of Toronto.

Resident Isa Rahamat said on Tuesday the situation is "very, very concerning" and he is frightened at the sight of pools of water beside his house.

"I didn't go to work today. I worked from home today because I'm worried. Because I know if it starts to melt, eventually water might come into the basement. I have some buckets downstairs and some towels ready just in case," Rahamat said.

If catch basins are blocked and the water has nowhere to go, it ends up in people's basements, he said.

Rahamat said the entire neighbourhood is concerned because the area is a flood-zone but he hasn't seen snow removal trucks in the area.

"The city should be more proactive and remove the snow," he said.

Jhane Farez, another Rockcliffe-Smythe resident, said water is pooling at the front of her house and streaming onto her property in the back from properties on higher ground. 

"Nobody is listening to us," Farez said. "Nothing is being done."

Farez said the flooding has been happening for years but the city is not taking action.

"Sometimes here, it's like a little river," she said.

Flood risk in Toronto is said to be normal, according to the Toronto and Region Conservation Authority.  According to its flood forecasting and warning centre, water levels are normal in rivers and streams across Toronto as well as along the Lake Ontario shoreline.

On its website, the city says that Rockcliffe-Smythe, which is on the flood plain of Black Creek and Lavender Creek, was developed after the Second World War, when it was common to build houses near rivers and on natural flood plains.

"Many properties in the area have experienced both surface flooding and basement flooding during severe storms due to riverine flooding and overloading of the City's sewer system," the city says.