The province's disaster relief team is in Windsor surveying damage from last week's massive flood.
The team of five, accompanied by insurance adjusters, will make a recommendation to Municipal Affairs Minister Bill Mauro whether to activate provincial disaster relief funding.
So far, the City of Windsor says 4,660 households flooded, but the spokesman for the minister, Mark Cripps, says the size of the flood will not influence the decision.
"This year, we've had significant rainfall across the province, and we've activated the program in a number of areas," he says. "Some of these floods can be as little as a couple of houses -- It doesn't have to be a volume of people. It just has to be unexpected and significant."
A map showing where basement floods were reported in the City of Windsor, August 31, 2017.
Cripps says there has been significant flooding across the province this year, but the one in Windsor-Essex is certainly one of the worst.
"In recent memory, yes," admits Cripps. "Eastern Ontario had some significant flooding this year as well. I don't think it was as high, but was definitely in the thousands."
The program was redesigned in 2015. Before that, communities had to do their own fundraising to help flood victims, and the province matched the funding. Unfortunately, that resulted in some long delays before residents were reimbursed.
He recommends home owners document as much of the damage as possible. Keep receipts, even ones that seem insignificant.
"You'll receive compensation quicker should the program be activated if you can verify the damages," says Cripps warning residents it will only cover the cost of what it takes to make the space livable. "If you have a $20,000 sports memorabilia collection in your basement, it's not going to cover that."
Some homeowners are still waiting for coverage from the flood last September, and Cripps says in most cases, it is because paperwork is incomplete, or receipts are missing.
"This is taxpayers money. We need to be accountable," he says. "
Meanwhile, Windsor reminds residents the Public Drop-Off Depot at Central Ave. is open and continues to accept flood damaged materials, like carpets, padding, dry wall, furniture, and baseboards free of charge. The depot is open Monday to Saturday, 8am to 5pm. Wait times vary throughout the day and could be long at times.
Curbside collection also continues, and yard waste collection has been canceled for the month of September so crews can get caught up.
If you have materials to go out to the curb, remember to roll carpeting and padding into small bundles about 4 ft in length. Bundle, bag or place in boxes any drywall or baseboards. Appliances must be secured shut. Loose material must be placed in garbage bags that weigh no more than 20 kg or 44 lbs. Also, place bags side-by-side on the curb.
Household chemical waste, like paint and chemicals, must be kept in a separate pile from other refuse because they will be collected by a different truck.
