SOMBA K'E/YELLOWKNIFE
The City of Yellowknife's department of public works and services had a busy week dealing with spring melt water.
On Tuesday, temperatures rose above the freezing mark and, although there was snow overnight, the Wednesday high of 10 C, according to Environment Canada data, caused a major melt and water was seen flowing down many of the city's streets.
"This hits us every year because (the melt) happens really fast," said Chris Greencorn, assistant director of public works, on Wednesday. "I mean, you saw the snow this morning and then, by this afternoon when you went out, it was all water."
Each spring, city workers must steam out the ice in each storm catch basin - the street-side grates that allow overflow water into the city's storm drain pipes - before water can get through.
Crews were out steaming for much of the day Wednesday, working to get the water off the streets and into the sewer, said Greencorn.
"A quick melt is more complicated because everybody can see it," he said. "The catch basins can't take water when they're frozen, so, until we get around and steam all those out, it will be a little sloppy."
The city prioritizes heavy traffic areas, he said, starting with downtown streets and other busy areas before moving on to residential neighbourhoods.
Also Wednesday, a water line break on Finlayson Drive in the Kam Lake area caused one lane of traffic to be closed. However, this was not related to water from melting snow, said Greencorn.
The forecast for the next week calls for temperatures to remain below 0 C.
