Saint John closes 4 parks, underscoring health hazards of floodwaters

The City of Saint John has closed four public parks because offlooding and health and safetyconcerns.

Robertson Square, Tucker Park and Lower Shamrock Park, all in the north end, and Dominion Park, on the west side, are all closed until further notice.

They were contaminated from the oil, they werecontaminated from the water, and they had to be brought back and decontaminated.- Joe Armstrong, Saint John EMO

"We're treating this water as contaminated," said Joe Armstrong, deputy director of the Saint John Emergency Measures Organization.

"Nobody's sure what's in it. There's no doubt some [raw] sewage in it."

As Armstrong spoke during a flood update Wednesday at Robertson Square Park on Bridge Street, he noted the brown colour of the floodwaters behind him.

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The water may contain parasites and viruses, and even emergency workers aren't taking any chances, he said.

"We did have one of our fire crews [Monday] night who retrieved a 200-gallon oil barrel in theAcamacBackland area and brought itto shore. They were contaminated from the oil, they werecontaminated from the water, and they had to be brought back and decontaminated, fresh gear. "

Floodwaters in the province are gradually decreasing after reaching "historic levels"that demolished homes and displaced more than 1,100 residents.

The water levelin the Saint John region Wednesday is 5.4 metres, down from its peak of 5.7 metres Monday night. Flood stage is 4.2 metres.

Levels are expected to remainabove flood stage for the next few days, but it could take months before life for residents affected by the unprecedented flooding returns to normal, officials have said.

The contamination will also be slow to ebb.

"It's going to be well into the recovery period before we would ever recommend anybody to be in the water," Armstrong said. "Sofor now, we are strongly trying to encourage people to stay out of the water for their safety."

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