Ninety people in four west Ottawa communities said they're suing the city for negligence in the flooding of their homes in 2009.

The more than $1.5 million class-action lawsuit is being filed by residents of Glen Cairn, Katimavik, Stittsville and Beaverbrook whose homes were flooded and belongings ruined in July 2009.

"They should've known this was going to happen because they kept building subdivision after subdivision around Bridlewood and Stittsville," said Paul Hayes from Glen Cairn. "All the water would just go to that pumping station and back up right here, and that's what happened. I never got flooded before in 30 years I was here."

"The water was up to about my knees, destroyed everything in the basement," said Curtis Schaler, whose basement was flooded twice. "The walls . . . furniture, electronics, computer, everything."

The lawsuit says the city was negligent in "designing, constructing and maintaining the sewer systems in those west areas of Ottawa."

The claim comes from a torrential downpour on July 24, 2009, which dumped 41 millimetres of rain on west Ottawa, flooding homes with water and sewage.

In a statement, the city's solicitor said the city has not yet been formally served with the claim, but "the city will be defending the action in accordance with the principles of the analysis of the potential negligence that was included in the west end action plan report."

The solicitor said the city won't be commenting on the case when it's before the courts.

With a report from CTV Ottawa's Katie Griffin