The following letter was sent to Municipal Affairs and Housing Minister Rob Flack. A copy was forwarded to The Lake Report for publication.

Dear Hon. Minister Flack,

On July 27, Niagara-on-the-Lake and many surrounding communities experienced extreme rainfall up to 146 millimetres within a five-hour period.

My office has been in regular contact with Lord Mayor Gary Zalepa and his staff, who are working to address resident concerns and tackle the high level of service calls due to this flood.

Residents have reached out to our office and local authorities reporting devastating floods in their homes, businesses, and local farms. While we do not yet have estimates of the total damage across the community, we know that many residents are experiencing devastating financial consequences.

For this reason, I am calling for the Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing to provide financial relief through the Disaster Recovery Assistance for Ontarians program. We have seen heartbreaking images of flooded basements, entire farmer’s fields swept away, and businesses’ inventories destroyed.

I appreciate your willingness to discuss this matter with me, and your offer to brief my team and other officials on the program in the coming days. The province must act to protect the wellbeing of all affected residents in Niagara-on-the-Lake and surrounding areas.

Please feel free to reach out to me and my office at any time to discuss this matter. It is of vital importance to Niagara-on-the-Lake residents.

Wayne Gates
MPP for Niagara Falls, Fort Erie, and Niagara-on-the-Lake