Sussex faces major flooding, evacuations, street closures

Flooding in Sussex from a day-long rainstorm has closed at least 12 roads and forced 24 people out of their homes so far.

"It's a devastating experience when it happens and it's happening quite frequently here," Scott Hatcher, the southern New Brunswick town's chief administrative officer, told Information Morning Saint John.

An emergency operations centre was mobilized on Wednesday night in the town of about 4,300 people.

Hatcher said there were no signs the water was receding, although the precipitation recently switched to snow.

A warming centre is open at 1067 Main St.

Hatcher said despite barricades, people have been trying to drive on closed streets. He said he understands some people may want an up-close look at the flooding, but their just causing more damage by creating waves.

The town suffered significant rainfall during a major flood in April 2014, he said, and this storm met or exceeded that amount of water.

More than 200 millimetres of rain has fallen, and many residents are experiencing property damage, he said.

Hatcher expected to see some relief in the next few hours with the shifting precipitation and dropping temperatures. Then the town will quickly move into cleanup mode.

He said the town has a flood mitigation plan but hopes to secure funding for a five-year construction project to reduce the effects of flooding.