WINNIPEG, Manitoba, July 7 (UPI) -- The Canadian provincial government of Manitoba has released an estimate of $40 million in damages caused by this spring's annual flooding.
Manitoba Emergency Measures Minister Steve Ashton made the announcement in Winnipeg, saying disaster assistance would be paid to 77 of the province's 198 municipalities, the Winnipeg Sun reported.
Ashton said aside from damage done to roads, bridges, drainage systems and other infrastructure, there have been more than 1,000 individual claims from homeowners and farmers.
He said while the $40 million estimate could rise by the autumn, it was still far below the $250 million Manitoba paid out after the spring thaw flooding in 1997.
The current estimate doesn't include the provincial buyout of 60 properties deemed too flood-prone, the newspaper said.
Rivers in southern Manitoba flooded in April, and the largest, the north-flowing Red River, crested at more than 20 feet above flood stage at the peak.
