Rain, plus rapid melt, equals a swollen river.
The Speed was flowing high and fast Thursday after 20 to 30 mm of rain drenched the Grand River Watershed Wednesday night, and warm winter temperatures caused a flash melt.
A lot of that moisture ends up in the Speed and Eramosa river systems, which join on the edge of downtown Guelph and flow as one to the Grand River near Cambridge.
All that sudden drainage activity had the Grand River Conservation Authority worried and warning about flooding in the watershed. The risk of flooding from ice jams was a possibility everywhere in the system, but it appeared there were no ice jams on the Speed Thursday, just that high rushing water.
This photo gallery follows the flow of the river from the Guelph Lake dam over to the area of the Guelph water treatment plant and the old Dolime quarry – most of the stretch that runs through Guelph.
The public is reminded to stay safe and exercise extreme caution around all water bodies. It’s true what authorities say, the banks next to rivers and creeks are very icy and slippery right now, and are hazardous.
