Public Security Minister Genevieve Guilbault said Monday that the floodwaters are holding stable, and were likely to remain near their current levels for the next few days.
However the thousands of people who had to abandon their homes will have to remain patient because they will not be allowed to return home anytime soon.
Throughout the province 6,425 homes are flooded, while 3,508 houses are cut off from other areas because the roads are covered in water.
9,523 people have been forced from their homes, more than half of them in Sainte-Marthe-sur-le-Lac alone.
Guilbault also confirmed that the town of Sainte-Marthe-sur-le-Lac had requested help in February from the Environment Ministry to shore up the dike that gave way on the weekend and that the government was still evaluating that request, pointing out the province also has to consider the bigger picture.
"What is important to say is that we will have to have a larger reflection on how do we prevent more floodings and how do we equip our municipalities to be able to face those floodings and if it includes erecting more dikes or doing some other [urban planning] in the cities, in the rivers, or things like that, we will be there but for now, we are still in intervention mode, in emergency mode. We are making sure that people are safe everywhere," said Guilbault.
Guilbault said she is very proud of all the teams from public and civil security who been working around the clock to monitor the flood situation and coordinate the response.
She mentioned police, firefighters, the Red Cross, elected officials, and all the volunteers who are out on the ground helping flood victims.
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