Update Message #3 from Mayor Bob Carter on the State of Emergency - April 22, 2026

Update Message #3 from Mayor Bob Carter on the State of Emergency

Dated: April 22, 2026

Although we remain in a State of Emergency, things are noticeably improving. The respite from the rain and the colder temperatures means that we are not getting additional water into the lakes to the north.

It will probably take a week or so days to bring down lake levels. In that time, you will see water levels on the Gull River go up and down, but they will remain below flood levels.

As we have said before, the paramount factor in our decision making has been public safety. With water levels receding, we will be inspecting bridges and roads to determine how we proceed. I hope that we will be able to get back to normal as quickly as possible.

If you are reading our media releases, you will see that we have transitioned our Evacuation Centre to a Warming Centre. That means we can release the Salvation Army folks and the Ontario Corps to return to their homes and make ready for their next deployments. It also means that we can start to return to normal and get our usual programming up and running.

On Monday, the Minister of Emergency Preparedness and Response, the Honourable Jill Dunlop and our MPP Laurie Scott visited our community to see firsthand the extent of the flooding and how our residents dealt with it. They were able to meet with many volunteers and were impressed by their spirit and hard work.

Once again, thank you everybody. More formal and complete thanks will be forthcoming. For now, we complete our tasks in dealing with the flood, as we plan and execute the clean up to get Minden ready for the summer.

Stay safe,

Bob Carter, Mayor
Township of Minden Hills