About 70 homes in the greater Quebec City region were evacuated Wednesday after flood waters from the Montmorency River spread into a nearby town.

Flooding damaged powerlines along a road near Huntingdon, 70 kilometres southwest of Montreal, on Wednesday.
(Peter McCabe/Canadian Press)

The Montmorency River overflowed this week, forcing public security officials to order residents in 70 households on Île Enchanteresse in Ste-Brigitte-de-Laval out of their homes.

Quebec's public security office said it's not sure when they'll be able to return.

In Huntingdon, southwest of Montreal, residents in 10 shoreline households were allowed to return to their homes Wednesday afternoon after evacuation orders were issued in the morning.

Flooding of the Chateauguay River prompted the evacuation of 12 homes in Huntingdon, Que., on Wednesday.
(Melissa Kent/CBC)

Huntingdon Mayor Stéphane Gendron said the people were briefly relocated to a nearby building until water levels subsided.

But the town is still on evacuation alert, public security officials said.

Quebec Intergovernmental Affairs Minister Benoît Pelletier visited Huntingdon briefly on Wednesday afternoon to assure people that compensation would be available for victims of flooding.

Huntingdon has been on guard since Tuesday after the Chateauguay and Trout rivers overflowed.

Civic officials say they have a solid emergency plan in place, including three temporary shelters in case flood waters invade Huntingdon's main streets.

Gendron said he's prepared to dispatch more evacuation orders to about 100 homes in the town's high-risk flood zone within minutes if it happens — which he fears is likely, given the rainy forecast for the rest of the week.

"It will be critical when we reach the street level, [and] we're almost there," he said Tuesday afternoon. "When [the water reaches] the street level, then we have to check every five minutes. Because if the ice comes from [upstream] it will be in Huntingdon in five minutes, and in 15 minutes we'll be flooded."

He urged residents to be prepared for the evacuation call. "Just watch the river, and be ready to leave. Clean the basement if [you] can, if [you] have precious stuff and things like that."

The Chateauguay and Trout rivers spilled their banks Tuesday after becoming engorged with melted snow and rain. A thick ice jam is preventing the water from circulating downstream, which increases the threat of major flooding.

Huntingdon residents lined a small bridge near the town centre Wednesday morning to watch flood waters flow down the Chateauguay River. Town officials said water was moving as fast as 168 cubic metres per second at some points.

Highway 138 was closed Tuesday because of flooding.
(Peter McCabe/Canadian Press)

A section of Highway 138 was closed Tuesday afternoon between Huntingdon and the U.S. border because of rising water levels.

The Trout River flooding has affected Chateauguay's Elgin, Hinchinbrooke and Godmanchester townships in particular.

Flood watch across Quebec

Several other Quebec rivers are under flood watch in the Montérégie, Beauce and Mauricie regions.

The town of Vallée-Jonction was evacuated Tuesday after a nearby river flooded streets and basements, but the situation seemed to stabilize after a day, Quebec public security officials said. They're still monitoring several other waterways, including the Chaudière, Huron, Acadie, Nicolet and Bulstrode rivers.

In Chaudières-Appalaches, the Anderson River spilled its banks, flooding nearby farmers' fields in Saint-Malachie.

The flood threat will persist until at least Thursday because of mild weather and rain in the forecast for most of southern Quebec.

Environment Canada said temperatures will reach 9 C in central and southwest Quebec, and 7 C in greater Quebec City, with as much as 50 millimetres of rain expected in the provincial capital region. 

Thaw hits ski slopes

Poor conditions caused by the mild weather has forced about 60 Quebec ski hills to close, including Village Vacances Valcartier and Le Relais Ski Centre. 

In the Eastern Townships, Ski Bromont operators closed half of their runs on Tuesday.

Ski hill operators won't hesitate to close for a few days when there is a thaw, explained Alexis Boyer-Lafontaine, a spokesman for Quebec's Ski Hill Operators Association.

"Ski areas tend to close their operations or reduce their operations when we get warmer temperatures like this, to preserve ski conditions for the weekend," he told CBC News.

Many outdoor skating rinks in Montreal and Quebec City are also closed.

With files from the Canadian Press