Frustration mounts along Lake Manitoba

The frustration of residents living around Lake Manitoba is rising as fast as the water levels they are scrambling to hold back.

Not only are people inDelta Beach upset about the water battering their shorelines and threatening their homes, they are equally irateby thelack of help from the province.

Don Clarkson, a board member with the Delta Beach Associations, said peoplehave no idea what to do, or what to expect from the rising Lake Manitoba, which is at historically high levels.

The lake, being fedby floodwaters from the Assiniboine River that are channeled through the Portage Diversion, isn't expected to reach its highest level until mid-June.

"We really feel like we're fighting this fight, you know, on our own. We've not seen any military. We've seen no provincial [officials], we've had one meeting through this whole process with emergency measures," said Clarkson, notingthat meeting was weeks ago.

Strong winds on the weekend whipped up waves in Twin Lakes Beach and Delta Beach, slamming them into theflood barriers on the shores.

Some water has breached the lake bank inplaces and washed over roads andclose tohomes.

"Many of these people have their entire, you know, life savings invested in those properties and you know, I think people are really at a loss as to what to do," Clarkson said.

He is demanding a meeting with the province to discuss the future of lake levels and how people should protect their properties.

A voluntary evacuation order was issued for the Delta Beach area on Monday due to the threat posed by the waves.

Kam Blight, reeve of the rural municipality of Portage la Prairie, said waterhas covered Hackberry East Road at the East Beach.

Nancy Matthews' cottage has been in her family for 100 years and she worried what could happen if the waves broke through the dikes.

"We worked hard for this and we were going to give it to our kids and now there might not be anything to give them," she said on Sunday.

"We've seen some pretty wicked storms out here but we haven't had the heights of the water. You know, I had to have a cry when I got out here."