Residents of Île-Bizard and Île-Mercier, just off Montreal’s West Island, say they found out Wednesday there aren’t enough sandbags to protect their homes from potential flooding.

“[Let’s] not to wait for the water levels to get too high to deliver materials that citizens need,” argued Pierre-Luc Chauchon, who lives in Île-Mercier.

“[The borough] should calculate the needs before the emergency and prepare well. Other towns have done it, I’m sure we can do it.”

In a Facebook post, Île-Bizard–Sainte-Geneviève Mayor Normand Marinacci told residents, “you are responsible for the protection of your house.”

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When some residents shared their concerns about the heavy rain expected to fall this weekend, the mayor responded, “there are not enough sandbags to protect adequately every house, which is why we encourage citizens to prepare for possible floods and protect their homes.”

According to the borough, sandbags were strategically put in high-risk flooding zones, but there are not enough to distribute to residents.

Both Île-Bizard and Île-Mercier were badly affected by the 2017 spring floods that forced hundreds of residents out of their homes.

“They didn’t move fast enough,” said Jim Butt, who lives 45 meters from the shore.

“Everybody knew what was coming, they waited and waited, and then they got stuck.”

This time, residents said they are asking the borough to be proactive.

“Everybody will have what they need to prevent flooding,” said Richard Liebmann, assistant director of the Montreal fire department.

“The emergency operation centre is taking care of all the logistics. All the different services work together […] the needs are accessed and the supply is routed where the priority lies.”

Marinacci did not immediately respond to Global News request for an interview.

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