Man arrested after properties cut up in wake of flooding

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This article was published 06/09/2022 (1138 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

AFTER days of heavy rain soaked the Beausejour area, a 77-year-old man allegedly took matters into his own hands to ease flooding on his property — and may now face charges.

The man is accused of using his own machinery to cut through two neighbours’ driveways and a municipal road to allow water to flow.

Residents of the neighbouring homes and some others nearby were stranded until temporary repairs were completed.

“It’s very annoying because you’re jeopardizing people’s lives. They were trapped,” said Trudy Turchyn, reeve of the Rural Municipality of Reynolds. “Had an emergency happened, there was no way to get services to those people.

“To just take it upon himself to resolve issues that affected him, it took some nerve, for sure.”

Manitoba RCMP spokesman Sgt. Paul Manaigre said the incident was reported at 11:30 a.m. on Aug. 18.

At least one complainant told police the public Road 71 North and a couple of driveways on Singbeil Road in Reynolds had been “dug up” without permission.

Located about 12 kilometres east of Beausejour, Singbeil is a boundary road between Reynolds and the RM of Brokenhead.

The man was arrested when police responded to the complaint. He was later released from custody.

He will likely face two counts of mischief over $5,000 when he appears in court, said Manaigre.

No charges have been formally laid.

Turchyn said the area had received about 100 millimetres of rain over a few days, resulting in overland flooding.

“The water was accumulating on his property, and the culverts that flow to a creek were overwhelmed, so that water wasn’t flowing fast enough for his liking,” she said.

Heavy equipment from neighbouring Brokenhead was brought in to fill in the road as a quick and temporary fix to restore access for residents. Permanent repairs have not yet been carried out.

“They will have to be repaired to the municipal standard,” said Turchyn.

A damage estimate has not been calculated.

It is not the first time the man has been accused of cutting through a neighbour’s driveway without permission.

Turchyn said similar allegations were raised about a decade ago.

She doesn’t know what, if any, action was taken at that time.

Reynolds didn’t get involved in that incident because it didn’t affect any municipal roads, said Turchyn.

chris.kitching@freepress.mb.ca

Twitter: @chriskitching