Author’s Note–In Lanark County we take no bullcrap as I say and we get down to business when business needs to be done. Wendell was in the Lanark County trenches working the ice storm and flood of 1998. I take my hat off to him for his real words and thank god for that. Thank you Wendell Crosbie and Earl Ennis for what you did. I salute you. Wendell ‘shoots from the hip’ and I thank him for it.

Memories of the Lanark Flood- by Wendell Crosbie

In the flood of 1998, Earl Ennis and myself worked hard sand bagging. I worked for Ontario Hydro at the time, worked very hard in the ice storm that caused the flood when the ice melted. Both Earl and I were exhausted after working long hours restoring power all over the Perth area.

Once we had a chance to volunteer for the flood still being exhausted from the ice storm, we headed to Lanark Village. The Township had a war room set up and told us what location we could go and sand bag. First it was a hit and miss and the paid people did not understand what was a priority. Both Earl and I know Lanark County inside and out and what person or landowner that was calling in if they lived on a river or a lake. There were calls coming in that the barn in Drummond Township had water coming onto the floor when the ice was melting off the roof. Who would give a s–t about that? (Author’s Note- Earl and Wendell obviously did and I love this man already)

We were told that some homes in the Ferguson Falls area needed our help. Yes, they did need our help and we sand bagged a home at the bridge and then made a walkway from elevated planks to the door from the high part of the driveway.

We went to Drummond Township the next day and the township garage was the war room. Some of the paid township workers had a piss poor outlook. We were told the flooded homes along the Mississippi was the land owners problem not the townships. We ask who in the township needed help, they said Innisville. Earl and I headed to Innisville with sand bags. We spent more then a day there helping to fill and place sand bags with the Army. That was a different story, seeing grown army men trying to make their fellow female worker get wet or just make fun of them. If I worked with that type of men for very long I may have held one of them under the water. We met some of the people in Innisville that were happy for our help and some that did not.

After Innisville we went to Lake Park Avenue, that was a complete joke. The one home owner or renter stayed in his house watching TV while we sand bagged his house.

Yes I was a volunteer for the Flood of 1998 and worked many long hours in the ice storm. I have good and bad memories about them both.

Thank you Wendell for sharing this. Please do share your flood stories so we can document them.