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Homeowners struggle to hold back record highs on Lake Ontario

Bill Deasy stacks sandbags on the edge of his property.
Veronica Volk
/
WXXI News
Bill Deasy stacks sandbags on the edge of his property.

Bill Deasy is stacking sandbags on the edge of his property in Webster, trying to keep the waves of Lake Ontario at bay.

"I hope the lake stays where it is and my house stays here."

So far the water hasn’t come into his home – yet. But the water is expected to continue to rise over the next one to three weeks, and a change in wind direction is all it would take to bring down this wall of sandbags.

"Every day the lake is different – waves, wind…"

It’s a similar story for homeowners across the Lake Ontario shoreline, who have been watching the water rise for weeks and trying to prevent flooding in their homes and yards.

Bryce Carmichael with the Lake Ontario Saint Lawrence River Board says they’re doing everything they to mitigate the problem.

"We are increasing them as much as we can without causing them undue harm downstream."

Carmichael says if they increase too much too fast, they could flood parts of the upper Saint Lawrence, including Montreal.

The previous record for highest water level on the lake was set in the spring of 2017.

Veronica Volk is a senior editor and producer for WXXI News.