Lincoln, Ont. declares state of emergency after historic flooding

The Town of Lincoln, Ont. has declared a state of emergency after historic flooding impacted the community over the weekend.

“Our community has faced an extraordinary challenge. We have witnessed the devastating impacts of flooding on families, businesses, farms and critical infrastructure,” said Mayor Sandra Easton.

“Declaring a state of emergency ensures we are taking every available step to protect our community, coordinate our response and advocate for the support Lincoln needs to recover.”

This comes after an extraordinary rainfall event overwhelmed roads, stormwater infrastructure, homes, businesses and municipal services.

The situation was further intensified by widespread power outages significantly affecting homes, businesses and municipal infrastructure.

Chief Administrative Officer Michael Kirkopoulos says officials have been working around the clock to respond to the event.

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The town’s Emergency Operations Centre (EOC) leadership team is also meeting continuously to coordinate the response, prioritize resources and guide decision-making.

Lincoln has received almost 300 flooding calls from residents within the last 24 hours. Residents are being asked by the town to remain patient as they continue to assess damage across the municipality of both private and public property.

To help share information with upper levels of government, the town is advising anyone impacted by flooding to fill out an online form.

To help the community recover from recent flooding and hydro outages, the town is partnering with agencies such as Niagara Region to expand garbage collection.

The Town of Lincoln is reminding residents that it remains committed to advocating for every available resource to help the community rebuild, but recovery will take time.

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