'We already lost a lot last year': Lachine condo complex floods for the second summer in a row

Dealing with an apartment flood is never fun, especially when it happens twice.

Jason Michael Olivo lives in the Jardins Victoria condo complex in Lachine. He has lived there with his girlfriend and dog since July 2022.

His unit flooded in July of last year. He had only gotten the all-clear to return roughly four weeks ago due to insurance complications.

"The second time around, you learn to let go a lot faster," Olivo said.

Painters were adding the finishing touches to his apartment. He had just replaced most of his furniture and appliances before the remnants of tropical storm Debby hit, forcing him and his girlfriend out a second time.

"We thought we were about to turn the page until all the rain happened," he said. "Last year, it was anything up to the shins in belongings that had to be thrown away. This year, it's everything up to the hips."

Alex Peters and Ryan Handfield are another couple in the building who experienced the same thing. They had just moved back into their apartment when the rainfall came.

"It just felt like there was finally some hope and then, for it to be just taken away from us hours later, it was really devastating," Peters said.

The damage began in Olivo's unit on the afternoon of Aug. 9, when water began pumping through the floors, sinks, and drains.

(Credit: Jason Michael Olivo)

He says the damage caused by flooding last year exceeded his insurance cap of $10,000. The insurance agent looked at one room and decided that was enough.

Similarly, Handfield says they claimed roughly $60,000 of damage due to flooding in July 2023.

This time around, Olivo says he could only salvage some clothes and bedsheets and has yet to have his unit examined by an insurance agent.

He already had trouble getting insurance coverage after the last flood, and now he is unsure if it will even be possible going forward.

"We were called to say that our file was opened, but no more than that so far," he said.

Olivo is currently staying with his mother in Sainte-Marthe-sur-le-Lac, an off-island suburb of Montreal.

He feels that updating infrastructure and sewage systems needs to be a top priority for Lachine and the City of Montreal.

"There is a severe update in infrastructure that needs to happen," he said. "If the sewage systems or the drains can't handle all the water that's coming from the rain and the condos alike, then it's just going to keep happening," Olivo said, citing the increased frequency of heavy rainfall.

Lachine Mayor Maja Vodanovic acknowledged the increased risk of flooding due to climate change and said that Lachine is working with the city of Montreal and Jardins Victoria to find solutions.

She says the city will update infrastructure as part of its action plan to fight flooding and is looking at waterproofing buildings such as Jardins Victoria.

"They have plans with a wall and a specific garage door that we've tested at the city and is waterproof," she said.

Residents want to see swift action to alleviate their flooding concerns.

"We are here waiting for something to happen so we can move on with our lives," Handfield said.