Gatineau Park remains closed to vehicles after torrential downpour damages roads, trails

The parkways inside Gatineau Park remain closed to drivers on Sunday as eastern Ontario and western Quebec continue to recover from Friday's significant rainfall.

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The nearby city of Gatineau saw a total of 83 mm of rain on Friday after remnants of Hurricane Debby moved through the region. Crews across Gatineau and Ottawa are continuing to work to reopen roads and repair culverts that were damaged or washed out during the storm.

Gatineau Park cancelled all shuttle service and closed many of its parking lots through the weekend as crews worked to assess the damages.

In an update at 1 p.m. on Sunday, the National Capital Commission (NCC) said Champlain Parkway, one of the main arteries into the park, remains closed to all visitors between Fortune and Gatineau parkways.

Fortune and Gatineau parkways are open only to cyclists and pedestrians. Dunlop Road is closed to all traffic until further notice.

"Please exercise caution, respect the barricades and follow the directional signage in place," the NCC said on its website.

The NCC is recommending against the use of the hiking trails, due to "serious" rain damage that remains. The storm caused several footbridges to be destroyed or swept away, including at trail 13, the Dunlop picnic area, and the Keogan trail.

O'Brien and Blanchet beaches at Meech Lake are closed as of Sunday afternoon, but beaches at La Pêche, Leamy and Phillippe Lake are open.

Parking lots in the north-end of the park, including P10, Dunlop, P11, P12 and P13 are closed.

Chelsea, Que. still under state of emergency

A state of emergency was called in the nearby municipality of Chelsea on Saturday, after the storm flooded roads.

The state of emergency is expected to end by Monday morning.

As of Sunday morning, officials have reopened Chemin de la Montagne and Chemin Juniper to traffic. Chemin Meech is also open as crews complete corrective work on the road. Work is expected to be completed on Sunday.

Chemin Fleury has reopened with one lane accessible to traffic.

Work is currently underway to reopen Chemin Hollow Glen and remains closed to all traffic.

"Crews are working to re-establish roads to ensure that no enclaves remain by the end of the day. Please use caution when travelling," the municipality said on its website.

The storm also caused flooding to many City of Ottawa roads, mostly in the west end communities of Carp, West Carleton and Kanata. According to the City of Ottawa's interactive traffic map, most roads have reopened, though the city is asking drivers to avoid parts of Marchurst Road and Old Second Line Road as repairs continue.

More rain is expected to arrive in the region on Sunday, with a few showers with a risk of thunderstorms forecasted this afternoon. Scattered showers are likely to continue into early next week.