CAMPBELLFORD, Ont. - Rising water in the Trent River and Crowe River in eastern Ontario have prompted a state of emergency in the Municipality of Trent Hills.
Mayor Hector MacMillan says people in low-lying areas should be prepared to evacuate and to be away from home for an extended period.
"Once it does peak, it could last two to three weeks, so people will not be able to return to their homes,'' he said.
"Their wells will likely be contaminated for some time, so they need to make arrangements that are longer than just one or two days.''
MacMillan also said a municipal evacuation centre is being prepared
"Should it be needed, it can be opened within an hour,'' he said.
MacMillan added that limited resources and personnel in the Campbellford area northwest of Belleville are already stretched to the limit.
To the southeast, a state of emergency remained in effect Thursday in the Belleville region along the Moira River watershed.
Water levels on the river remain high, but have stabilized, but the emergency status is expected to remain in effect until next week.
A boil water advisory remains in force and residents are advised to have their well water tested after the flood waters recede.
There is no estimate yet of the financial cost of the flooding, but Belleville mayor Neil Ellis said it will be expensive.
"Each individual homeowner's going to have their own cost ... the city's cost is probably going to exceed a couple hundred thousand dollars.''
South of Peterborough, meanwhile, flood waters that spilled into the city along Little Lake have receded and are holding steady.
The city's emergency management co-ordinator said water reached the sandbagged shoreline of the Holiday Inn Tuesday afternoon have pulled back by about a metre on Wednesday.
