The main road leading into Morris is impassable due to flood waters. (John Redekop/CBC)

Municipalities across southern Manitoba are bracing for a post-flood deluge of bills.

The mayor in the RM of Ritchot, immediately south of the Winnipeg city limits, estimates damage from the 2009 flood will reach between $1 million and $2 million.

Bob Stefaniuk won't know for sure the extent of the damage until the water is gone. And that will take some time, as 40 per cent — about 135 square kilometres — of Ritchot's land mass is currently under water.

'There's always disputes over what's claimable and what's not, and we always lose something. The last time we even took it to an appeal process and we lost that as well.'—Don Forfar, St. Andrews reeve

The federal and provincial governments have committed to covering up to 90 per cent of municipal costs for the flooding, but even so, that would leave Ritchot with about $100,000 that it would have to find.

That's a big chunk when the entire annual operating budget is $4 million, Stefaniuk said.

In the RM of St. Andrews, Reeve Don Forfar has been through several floods and said his community has rarely received 90 per cent compensation.

"Yeah, that's what it is [supposed to be] but it never plays out that way," he said about the proposed coverage by the government. "There's always disputes over what's claimable and what's not, and we always lose something. The last time we even took it to an appeal process and we lost that as well."

Forfar anticipates the costs to the RM this year will be a few million dollars.

"We've been out documenting as much of the municipal damage as we've got: roads washed out, crossings washed out, ditches filled up with garbage — garbage being debris like mud and silt and fridges. It's amazing what floats around," he said.

He said the RM council has already drafted its budget — with no tax increase — but everything is now up for review. Forfar said he won't know until next week if that tax freeze is possible to maintain.

Disaster assistance office now open

Individual homeowners impacted by the flood are also eligible for compensation from the government. Manitoba Emergency Measures Minister Steve Ashton announced Monday that the maximum compensation has been doubled to $200,000 under the disaster assistance program.

The program is funded by the federal and provincial governments, with Ottawa kicking in the most — up to 90 per cent. The funding will help property owners pay for repairs of damage not covered by private insurance.

The province opened an office in Selkirk on Tuesday to co-ordinate and processes the applications for disaster assistance. Located inside the Civic Centre, the office will be open 11 a.m. until 7 p.m. every day this week.

Officials will decide at the end of the week whether to extend its operation, said Lee Spencer, director of recovery for Manitoba's emergency measures organization.

The office will provide information on how to dry out flooded properties and combat the development of mould. Once the water levels have receded, government officials will begin inspecting damage to property, said Spencer.

Offices south of Winnipeg to open soon

The Selkirk office is there to serve communities north of Winnipeg. Officials said similar centres will be opened in hard-hit areas south of Winnipeg once the water subsides.

Right now, many communities are enclosed by ring dikes with the access outside the dike possible only by boat.

Still, people can begin the process of applying for disaster financial assistance by going online to the government site. The link is located at the top right of this CBC page.

South of Winnipeg, 1,680 square kilometres of land is under water. Across the province, 2,470 people have registered as evacuees with the Red Cross or Manitoba Association of Native Fire Fighters.