Medicine Hat Flood 2013: Part 2

Around 5am on Sunday morning I ventured down to the river to get my first look of the flood moving in. The South Saskatchewan River had started spilling onto River Road near City Hall, and with the company of a few other curious onlookers, we watched as over the course of 15 minutes the river continued to swallow the street.

Movement was limited as entire parts of the city were blocked off by police, and it was certain that the bridges would close by midday. The craziest experience for me was the sound of the river from the middle of Finlay Bridge. Not only was the water moving at an incredible speed, but amid the silence of the city, logs and even full trees in a few cases, were colliding into the pillars of Finlay and it echoed as they snapped. Now it seemed real. This was the start of the flood in our city.

In this 2 second exposure you can really get a sense of the water's speed.

I shot pictures of my cousin here a few weeks ago, it's all under water now.

Again, the long exposure emphasizes how fast the water is moving.

Less than 24 hours difference from the shot below.

Medicine Hat Flood 2013: Part 1

My hometown of Medicine Hat, Alberta is currently in a state of emergency as preparations have been ongoing for the impending flood at our doorstep. From volunteers sandbagging at Elm Street School to night crews working into the wee hours of the morning to safeguard City Hall along River Road, I've captured some incredible actions in the last 48 hours. 

I've watched the river consistently rise in this time, but the worst is yet to come. In line with what we've seen in the mountains and Calgary, this flood is predicted to be an aggressive one as it makes its way into the southeast of the province. After spending over a year photographing the history of my hometown, this is the first time I feel that I've been capturing history in the making. Stay safe Hatters. Here's my first set of images from the 2013 Medicine Hat flood preparations.