Steinbach recently faced a rare storm, witnessing two months’ worth of rain in just one night, a once-in-a-century event. Despite moving to a new facility over two years ago, the city’s animal shelter has not seen a September pass without evacuating animals due to flooding. Approximately 200 residents in southeastern Manitoba are awaiting news on financial aid from the provincial disaster relief fund to assist with consecutive flood damages.
In 2024, a storm brought 156 millimetres of rain over September 16-17. This year, the deluge intensified, with 103 millimetres falling in four hours on September 11-12, totaling 135 millimetres by the storm’s end, as reported by Environment and Climate Change Canada. The volunteer-run Steinbach and Area Animal Rescue had to relocate 22 animals for a month due to the damage caused by the rain.
The organization has already spent $50,000 on overland flooding deductibles in the past two years, with repairs still ongoing. During this year’s downpour, the shelter experienced water pouring through windows and flooding the basement, causing significant damage to supplies and food.
Steinbach residents, including those in La Broquerie and Niverville, also suffered from the storm’s impact. The city manager, Troy Warkentin, mentioned that around 200 individuals are awaiting disaster aid approval, as the province is yet to declare the flooding a disaster. The only approved disaster assistance so far is for the wildfires that occurred this year.
Steinbach’s infrastructure faced challenges due to the consecutive severe storms in 2024 and 2025. The city is working on expanding its drainage infrastructure and improving water management systems to address future flood risks. Residents are also taking precautions by investing in sump pumps and backflow valves to protect their homes.
Despite these efforts, Warkentin emphasized that the intensity of the recent storms overwhelmed existing systems and highlighted the need for further infrastructure upgrades to mitigate the impact of severe weather events in the future.