Flood displaces more than 40 vulnerable Ottawa residents
More than 40 Ottawa residents have been forced from their homes and are facing an uncertain future after a flood in their building over the weekend.
A pipe burst at an Ottawa Salus building on Saturday morning during the extreme cold weather, flooding four floors of residences and offices. The building on Scott Street is part of a network of affordable and supportive housing for those dealing with addiction and mental health challenges.
Ottawa Salus’s executive director Mark MacAulay saying the flood has been devastating for the building's 42 residents.
“They really want to come home and have their home and have their belongings and be back there, and that’s something they are not sure of right now," MacAulay said. "So we have to reassure them every day."
The tenants have limited income and many of them receive ODSP. Ottawa Salus is appealing to the community for financial support.
“The biggest thing right now is if people can donate money to help support the transition for them as we have to look at temporary housing," MacAulay said. "We will need to move them to the new housing help pay for them to stay, then move them back here once repairs are complete."
The pipe was part of the sprinkler system on the fourth floor, cracked by ice and flooding almost every space, leaving inches of water in the basement. Ottawa Salus’s property manager says the elevator, floors, walls and ceilings throughout the building will need to be repaired or replaced.
A flood-damaged hallway at Ottawa Salus on Scott Street. (Shaun Vardon/CTV News Ottawa)
Most residents did not have insurance to cover the damage to personal items, so many will be looking for the basics to help rebuild their lives once they can return to their units. Residents will be in limbo for the foreseeable future, as they do not have a timeline for when repair work will start or be finished.
MacAulay says Ottawa Salus started out small with just one house, and now provides homes and support to more than 700 people across the capital.
“We are focused on helping people to be resilient, to rejoin and reconnect with their community,” MacAulay said. “To live the life they want to live in the best possible way."
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
BREAKING Trudeau promises $1B in loans for child-care providers to expand care centres
The federal government is launching a new loan program to help child-care providers in Canada expand their spaces, and will be extending further student loan forgiveness and training options for early childhood educators, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced Thursday.
Spring allergy season has begun. Where is it worse in Canada?
The spring allergy season has started early in many parts of Canada, with high levels of pollen in some cities already. Experts weigh in on which areas have it worse so far this season.
'Nonsense:' Doug Ford slams lawsuits filed by Ontario school boards against social media platforms
Premier Doug Ford says that lawsuits launched by four Ontario school boards against a trio of social media platforms are “nonsense” and risk becoming a distraction to the work that really matters.
Several flight attendants from Pakistan have gone missing after landing in Canada
Multiple flight attendants from Pakistan International Airlines have abandoned their jobs and are believed to have sought asylum in Canada in the past year and a half, a spokesperson for the government-owned airline says.
N.B. man wins $64 million from Lotto 6/49
A New Brunswicker will go to bed Thursday night much richer than he was Wednesday after collecting on a winning lottery ticket he let sit on his bedroom dresser for nearly a year.
Multiple bridges in Calgary shut down for police incident
Calgary police have shut down a number of bridges into and out of the downtown core as officers deal with a distraught individual.
King Charles calls for acts of friendship in first public remarks since Kate's cancer diagnosis
King Charles III gave public remarks for Maundy Thursday, addressing the importance of acts of friendship, following his and Catherine, Princess of Wales’ cancer diagnoses.
Fallen crypto mogul Sam Bankman-Fried sentenced to 25 years in prison
Crypto entrepreneur Sam Bankman-Fried was sentenced Thursday to 25 years in prison for a massive fraud that unravelled with the collapse of FTX, once one of the world's most popular platforms for exchanging digital currency.
A dog and a bird formed an unlikely friendship. Their separation has infuriated followers
Peggy is a stout and muscular Staffordshire bull terrier, and Molly is a magpie, an Australian bird best known for swooping on humans during breeding season, not for befriending dogs. But in an emotional video posted online, Peggy’s owners announced that the animals had been separated.