A Canadian state of emergency remains in effect more than a month after severe flooding displaced thousands of residents, leaving 3,000 animals stranded on flooded farmlands.
The floodwaters covered 13,094 hectares (31,231 acres) of forest land in the Ste. Agathe River Valley north of Montreal in Quebec Province, according to the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. The city of Gatineau, just outside Ottawa, was forced to evacuate tens of thousands of residents during January’s disaster.
Marlene Volk, a vice president of the farmers’ association Dairy Farmers of Quebec, told the CBC that many animals have now returned to their farms, including domestic herds and livestock used for dairy production.
Eighty-four of the 145 affected farms were able to get back into business after insurance money, government relief funds and partnerships between agricultural groups and local authorities were secured, Volk said.
The main concern is supporting the 11 surviving dairy cattle in the remaining 10 farms, she said.
“It will be a month of work to get back to normal,” Volk said.