Rising waters leaves residents stranded in Grand Valley

Rising waters in the Grand River around the Town of Grand Valley have left some residents stranded as the watershed received more than 100 millimetres of rain early Friday morning.

• Residents told to stay in homes as heavy rains cause flooding in Harriston
• Grand River Conservation Authority issues flood warnings after 100 mm rain

"Things are looking like it does in the spring," MayorSteve Soloman told CBC K-W on Friday morning.

"Grand Valley's used to being flooded once a year, but not this time of year."

Access has been closed tothe Highway 25 bridge that crosses Main Street.

"When I was down earlier today, it was one of the highest levels of waters I'vesaw coming under the bridge. It was just practically touching it on the underside,"Solomansaid.

Approximately six homes surrounded

The high water levels in that part of town have even left some residents stranded in their homes. Parts of Water Street have been turned into an island.

"They're stuck there. They can't go either way," said Soloman, who believes there might be six homes surrounded by water between William Street andEmma St. S.

Despite that, people are keeping their cool, he said.

"People around here are pretty resilient, there's no big panic. What we do have is a lot of sightseers, which is compounding the problem."

The Grand River Conservation Authority is asking people to stay away from the flood areas, as water is moving higher and faster than usual and could be dangerous.