La Broquerie crews have been working diligently to reverse the flood damage after the municipality declared a local state of emergency Thursday.

Emergency Coordinator Louis Tétrault says the public works department is doing their part in shoring up roadways and assisting homeowners.

“What the RM is trying to do, as best they can, is provide resources and help in achieving the protection of these properties, however, the responsibility remains the property owners’.”

It is the community of Zhoda that has hit been hardest by recent rainfall. Steven Beally lives along Brenden Road, perhaps this most flooded spot in the entire community.

Steven Beally looks at his house from the roadway.

“The RM has supplied us with the sand and the bags," he says, "and that was a huge, huge relief.”

Volunteers will be sandbagging Beally’s home at some point today. Beally says he has seen flooding before but, when comparing current conditions to spring’s annual water levels, he indicates that this is an entirely different beast.

“We haven’t ever seen it come up this high, I don’t think this many roads have ever been affected before. Certain spots of Zhoda are actually becoming trapped by the water. Things are getting a little bit sketchy.”

Read more: Heightened Flood Concerns In Zhoda

Tétrault looks at the rain in the forecast and grits his teeth. Still, he says his plan is to remain positive.

“If the forecast stays the same and if the rain comes over a period of many hours instead of 30 minutes, I think we can handle that,” voices Tétrault, “I’m optimistic.”

Beally shares Tétrault ’s optimism, though with a darker undertone.

“I’ve always wanted a lakeside property, he quips, “I’m starting to think I should build myself a floating dock and get a motorboat.”

Both men look into the weekend bracing for the worst but hoping for the best.

Read more: La Broquerie Declares Local State Of Emergency