Posted:
Saturday, Jan. 17, 2015 (Halifax, NS) – Emergency maintenance work on a fish ladder adjoining the Lake Major dam just outside Dartmouth is underway now and is expected to continue until about 5 p.m. today.
To begin, crews will be placing large rocks at the base of the dam near the fish ladder. The next step will be to reinforce the fish ladder itself by filling it in with more rocks. Halifax Water does not expect any disruptions to water service while this work is going on.
As a precautionary measure, several hundred residents in the Salmon River and surrounding areas have been evacuated from their homes while this work is going on.
Halifax District RCMP and ground search and rescue volunteers went door-to-door to approximately 135 homes last evening to notify residents of the mandatory evacuation, which went into effect at 8 a.m. today.
There are two evacuation warming centres set up for displaced residents, one at the East Preston Community Centre, 24 Brooks Dr., East Preston, and the other at City Heights Church, 946 Main St., Westphal. Food will be provided on site. Two Halifax Transit buses are also set up at the church site only, which will serve as comfort buses for any pets that people may have brought with them. Pets must be in a cage on the bus, unless they’re accompanied by their owner.
Residents are reminded that four of the six bridges in the area are closed while this work is underway. Those include the bridges on Lake Major Road, Salmon River Drive, Crane Hill Road and Ross Road. Transportation & Public Works has barricades in place at these sites and a barricade is also set up at the intersection of North Preston Road and Johnson Road in North Preston to prevent motorists from entering the construction zone. The bridges on Highway 107 and Highway 207 will remain open throughout the day, barring any issues during the maintenance.
There is one Halifax Transit bus route affected by the closures – Route 61 trough North Preston. Detour information is on the Halifax.ca website on transit’s service disruptions page.
Further updates on this situation can be obtained through the Citizen Contact Centre at 311, the Halifax.ca website and Twitter via @HalifaxWater and @hfxgov.
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