Celine Bourassa drags a kayak along a street immersed in flood waters in the town of St-Blaise-sur-Richelieu, Que., Monday, May 30, 2011.Graham Hughes/The Canadian Press
Prime Minister Stephen Harper is set to visit Quebec's flood-devastated Richelieu River region Monday in his first tour of the area, several weeks after the disaster hit.
Mr. Harper is expected to meet with local officials and also fly over the flood-damaged valley for a first-hand look at the extent of the damage.
At least two local mayors say they will buttonhole Mr. Harper over the need for the army to participate in the post-flood cleanup.
"His visit is kind of late, after all the fuss over what the army was supposed to do," said Michel Fecteau, head of a group organizing a massive volunteer cleanup of the area about 40 kilometres south of Montreal, close to the border with New York state.
Quebec has over the past several weeks demanded more help in the cleanup from the federal government – specifically the army – but federal ministers said it's not part of the military's mandate to clean up after such disasters.
The Canadian Forces arrived on the scene several weeks ago to assist local emergency authorities with such tasks as laying down sandbags and evacuating victims.
Gilles Dolbec, mayor of St-Jean-sur-Richelieu, said in an interview with a local all-news television network that he will ask Mr. Harper that the military help in the cleanup, particularly in the removal of hundreds of sandbags as the floodwaters slowly recede.
Gérard Dutil, the mayor of hard-hit St-Paul-de-l'Île-aux-Noix, told local media that he will also request that the military stick around to provide much-needed assistance in the mop-up.
There was widespread public criticism, as well, that Mr. Harper skipped visiting the region but found time to go out to the Manitoba flood zone and to fire-ravaged Slave Lake, Alta.
Two federal ministers did, however, visit the Richelieu Valley, where more than 3,000 houses have been affected and about 1,000 residents forced to leave their homes.
Quebec Premier Jean Charest made his fifth visit on Saturday. Three provincial task forces have been created to deal with the longer-term consequences of the flooding in the areas of housing, repairs and city planning.
More than 2,600 cheques from the province totalling about $7-million have been handed over to victims of the devastation.
An estimated 12,000 volunteers have responded to requests to take part in a massive citizen cleanup beginning next weekend and continuing the weekend after that. It is believed to be one of the largest such efforts in the province's history.
Among the work to do is raking and removing debris and removing sandbags.
Bertrand Marotte