Drumheller provided a hopeful ending to a tough day for Federal Minister of Public Safety Vic Toews as he toured areas of Alberta devastated by floodwaters.
    Minister Toews met with MP Kevin Sorenson, Mayor Terry Yemen, Drumheller Fire Chief Bachynski, RCMP Corporal Kevin Charles, CAO Ray Romanetz and Drumheller-Stettler MLA Rick Strankman. This was the minister’s final destination after visiting some of the hardest hit areas in the province, and it provided him with a positive outlook after learning how Drumheller managed its high water event.
    “This was a very positive ending to the day. We have seen what happened in High River, Siksika and in Calgary,” Toews told inSide Drumheller. “I was expecting to see the same sort of thing here in Drumheller. We know a few homes have been destroyed and these are very serious things, but we knew it wasn’t as significant.”
    He learned why the damage wasn’t quite as significant.    
    CAO Romanetz and Mayor Yemen walked Minister Toews through the flooding in 2005 and the successes and failures of the town’s mitigation of the impact of the rushing water.
    Following the flood of 2005, the Town of Drumheller began lobbying the provincial government to assist in building permanent dykes in Midland and in Newcastle. Romanetz explained they were successful without having to use political channels.
    These dykes were crucial for Drumheller to make it through the events of the last few days.
    “It was a great presentation, because it fits exactly into what I have been saying since I have been involved in flood issues, which is basically my entire political career,” Toews said. “That is how flood mitigation can make a difference in the amount of tax payer money spent. Not only does it improve safety, rather than rebuilding the same damaged property every year, you take certain preventive steps one time. The entire property will be secure for many years.”
    Romanetz demonstrated how a levee in East Coulee erected in the 1980s has helped, and he demonstrated the need for another like-project in the Rosedale area.
    The federal government has a Disaster Financial Assistance Arrangement with the province and territorial government to help citizens through disasters. It has been in place since the 1970s and in that time, has paid out nearly $2 billion in assistance.
    The Federal Department of Public Safety has been a part of designing a National Disaster Mitigation Strategy, and the measures Drumheller took  to plan for overland flooding is the type of leadership needed to build efficiency and safety.
    “The Deputy Ministers will be coming back with a report on mitigation in the next little while. That will be brought to the ministers and we will discuss how cost is to be shared
(between various levels of government) and look at the recommendations,” said Toews. “The point is, you don’t have to go through this emergency type of situation with temporary dyking and earthworks, if it is done and you can anticipate what is going to happen and feel fairly secure.”
    “It’s been successful in other jurisdictions where we have done that on a pilot project basis, so I was very pleased the Prime Minister gave me the green light to negotiate with the provinces on a national basis to become part of our disaster financial assistance arrangement.”

    Volunteers for the Canadian Badlands Passion Play were forced to evacuate the Nacmine campground as waters inched higher over the weekend.
    Now, the Passion Play site has turned into a small city as the volunteers pitched their tents. It is hoped a new location can be found for the volunteers.
    “All the volunteers were moved to the Passion Play site. We have 40 trailers and many tents in our parking lots and are looking for a new location for them for the next four weeks,” said Vance Neudorf, executive director of the Passion Play.
    “The Passion Play site looks like the days prior to 2008 when we used to have all the actors stay on our premises from May to July. The Nacmine campground was a great blessing and saved our staff and actors from 10 weekends of camping in the heat on our gravel parking lots.”
    No one was hurt, but the campground wash car was badly damaged when it was dragged by the river.
    “We are hoping to find an oilfield or power company that may donate a purpose built wash car, one that we can install each spring and remove each fall. We need one that can be easily and quickly removed from the flood plain area should we suffer another flood in the future,” said Neudorf.
    Despite the setback, the Passion Play is getting ready for their 20th anniversary season, which will start on July 10.
    “We look forward to going back to the Nacmine Campground in 2014 and greatly value the assistance of our neighbours, the Nacmine Community Association,” said Neudorf.