Rural Municipality of Springfield

If you have a flooding emergency during normal working hours OR after hours, please call 204-444-2241. If a message is left after hours it will be forwarded to an on-call number.

All messages left with staff or on the Public Works answering machine will be forwarded to the appropriate personnel.

All messages will be rated on a priority scale. Priorities are ranked as follows:

1. House and home
2. Outbuildings or structures
3. Yard sites or other

Once the message has been triaged, a staff member will then inspect sites in order of priority to verify and determine if any corrective action is needed to be taken at that time.

Please Note: Water on your lawn or around trees does not constitute an emergency.

A limited inventory of pre-made sandbags will be available at the Public Works Building prior to and during the spring thaw. Once the pre-made inventory has been used up, materials will be available on site for residents to make their own sandbags.

If staff are available, they will be assisting in the production of sandbags, however if staff are dealing with other flood related/operational issues, residents can make their own sandbags with materials at the Public Works Building.

Sandbags can be picked up, and/or materials to make sandbags will be available at the Public Works Building 24 hours a day prior to and during the spring thaw.

If you would like to volunteer with sandbagging operations, please contact Shawn Wilkinson at the R.M. of Springfield Recreation Department at (204) 444-4119.

No, sandbags will not be delivered by the R.M., they must be picked up in person at the Public Works Building.

Residents who have taken sandbags are responsible for the proper disposal of sandbags. The sand used in the bags has NO salt in it and can be used around the yard. Residents are not permitted to dump sand on roadways and if caught dumping could face fines. Residents are permitted to dispose sandbags at either one of the R.M.’s waste transfer stations. Emptied sandbags may be bagged in garbage bags and disposed of at the waste transfer stations.

Instructions on how to properly construct a sandbag dike can be found on the Province of Manitoba website at the link below:

https://www.gov.mb.ca/emo/pdfs/sandbag.pdf

Application for flood compensation can only be made with the Province of Manitoba. Please click on the following link or call (204) 945-4772 or toll free 1-888-267-8298 for more information:

http://www.gov.mb.ca/emo/home/dfa/index.html  

The R.M. will not provide compensation to residents for flood damage. 

The Administration Office and the Public Works Office have sampling bottles and forms available for residents. The R.M. will not be delivering samples to the lab.

The Province of Manitoba recognizes three (3) accredited labs for well water testing; ALS Environmental; Horizon Labs Ltd; Maxxam Analytics. Costs for testing vary between labs. Please contact the labs directly for more information.

ALS Environmental – 1-204-255-9720

Horizon Lab Ltd. – 1-204-488-2035

Maxxam Analytics – 1-204-477-8721

If you have a flooding emergency after hours, please call (204) 444-2241 and your call will be forwarded to an on-call number.

All messages left with staff or on the Public Works answering machine will be forwarded to the appropriate personnel to be inspected. That staff member will then determine if any corrective action(s) need to be taken at that time. 

All messages will be rated on a scale of emergency.

The R.M.’s priority will be the attempt to resolve any immediate flooding risk to homes. All other emergencies will be dealt with on a priority basis as determined by the Public Works Department. 

Note:   Water on your lawn or around trees does not constitute a top priority.

Cleaning of the ditches in the springtime varies from year to year. Staff will evaluate the following to determine which drains if any will be opened: historical flooding event information, existing ground saturation conditions, precipitation, drainage system upgrades, weather etc. to determine which ditches to open.

No, the R.M. will only clean the snow out of municipal or Conservation ditches, if the Public Works Department deems it necessary.

No, the R.M. will only steam culverts on municipal right-of-way’s.

No. The R.M. will not loan out pumps to private residents. The Public Works Department has a limited supply of pumps available for its use during the emergency flooding situations. In addition, there are also liability issues as well as damage concerns, leading to equipment being unavailable for use.

No, the R.M. will not deliver sand or gravel to Residents. If residents require sand or gravel they should check with local aggregate suppliers or the yellow pages under "Sand & Gravel".

Yes, the R.M. will fix your approach if it is washed out due to floodwaters. If your approach is impassable the R.M. will make every attempt to repair it as soon as possible. If your approach is damaged, yet passable, the R.M. will repair it as soon as time permits in order of priority.

If residents notice their culvert end(s) have been damaged by equipment during spring run-off, they are advised to call Public Works so that it can be recorded and addressed during the summer construction season.

Flood gates are flow control devices designed to control the direction of flow in one direction and prevent the backflow of water resulting in unwanted flooding. Tampering with these flood gates by flipping them over or propping them open can result in the backflow of water causing major flooding and potential damage to properties and crops on farm lands.

If Residents have any other spring run-off concerns or requests, they can contact the Public Works Department on the R.M. website at:

https://www.rmofspringfield.ca/p/service-requests   

Select the Public Works Department then select Drainage as the topic. Residents can also call the Public Works Department at (204) 444-2241.