Flood Details - 2003-10-27 - 2003-10-31

A rain event that lasted over three days brought high water levels to many parts of the province in October. The Nerepis River overflowed its banks, causing a soggy mess at the nine-hole Welsford Golf Club. Down the road at Loyalist City Coins Ltd., the owner dealt with the effects of 25 to 30 centimeters of water in his basement. On Route 101 at Hoyt, traffic was reduced to one lane because of water on the road. Some streets in the Drury Cove and Glen Falls areas of Saint John were closed on the 30th, after Marshall Creek spilled over its banks. There were also reports of isolated street flooding, washed out shoulders and basement flooding. At one point, up to a meter of water covered the roadways around Drury Cove. There was some water on Rothesay Avenue, but not enough to close it down. Foster Thurston Drive, Ashburn Lake Road and McAllister Drive between Golden Grove Road and Majors Brook Drive were closed. In Fredericton, Sunpoke Road at Rusagonis Road, Priceville Road and Harrison Brook Bridge were all closed. An Environment Canada forecaster said October would end up breaking a 50-year-old record for rainfall levels. Normal total monthly averages for October run about 96mm – some parts of the province received that amount or more during this rain event.

Environment Canada precipitation totals for October 27th, 28th and 29th: St. Stephen: 113 mm Point Lepreau: 98.8 mm Fredericton: 92.8 mm Saint John: 77 mm Saint-Léonard: 74.2 mm Sussex: 69.2 mm Moncton: 31.6 mm

Flooding washed out some roads in the province, including parts of Route 101 in Welsford and Hoyt, Upper Hampstead Road and Harrison Brook Bridge off Route 890. The Department of Transportation and Infrastructure also urged caution on Route 7 at Eagle Rock where the shoulder of the southbound lane was washed out, along with Route 7 between Petersville Hill and Welsford. On the Menzie Settlement Road in Browns Flat, a small bridge washed out, stranding residents on the other side. The biggest incident occurred on Route 101 at Clarendon, which was closed for a few hours when high water washed out a section of the road. It was believed something flowed down the small stream and blocked the end of the culvert going under the two-lane road. When the water was unable to flow freely through the culvert, it created a massive backup and the pressure caused the road to cave in.