Heavy rainfall and rising water levels have forced more than 200 people north of Quebec City to leave their homes, with helicopters needed in some cases to take isolated residents, firefighters and police officers to safety. The water levels surged rapidly, going from 50 cubic metres per second on the morning of Christmas Eve to 850 cubic metres per second at 11:45 p.m. on Christmas Day, according to the town's mayor, Carl Thomassin. A public security official says water levels this high are rare in the month of December. Rising waters in the Jaune River threatened close to 100 homes in the nearby town of Lac Beauport. So far, only a handful of homes have been evacuated, and the mayor says he's optimistic the situation won't get much worse with water levels expected to go down.

Source: CBC News December 26, 2020 14:36 UTC