CBC Lite Sections News • Canada • Sudbury What you need to know about flooding in northeastern Ontario on Friday Gabrielle Huston | CBC News | Posted: April 16, 2026 6:02 PM | Last Updated: 1 hour ago Mindemoya Hospital closed, Central Manitoulin looking for volunteers to fill sandbags Media | Swollen Bass Creek rushes past the Batman sawmill in Sheguiandah, Ont. Caption: Manitoulin Island is facing widespread flooding due to snowmelt and heavy rains. Bass Creek, which normally flows gently past the old Batman sawmill in Sheguiandah, Ont., was seeing significant water flow on April 15. Submitted by Chris Gauthier. Open full embed in new tab Loading external pages may require significantly more data usage than loading CBC Lite story pages. The Latest * The Municipality of Central Manitoulin is looking for more volunteers to fill sandbags in anticipation of rain on Saturday. * The hospital in Mindemoya won't reopen until sometime next week, according to president and CEO of the Manitoulin Health Centre. * There is still a drinking water advisory in effect for the Village of Mindemoya. * 50 people in French River are being forced out of their homes due to flooding, according to the mayor. People at the community centre in Alban today were filling sandbags. * The City of Greater Sudbury has updated its list of flooding-related road closures. As of 11:15 p.m. on April 17, Kauppi Road, Molly's Road, Johnson Road, Boundary Road, Caruso Street, Larchmont Drive, part of Mikkola Road and the bridge section on Simmons Road had closed. * This Ontario flood map shows that much of the northeast region remain under a flood warning, with watersheds in Timmins and on the James Bay Coast being monitored. The Ministry of Natural Resources and local conservation authorities have also issued flood warnings or watches for several areas. * Ontario Provincial Police confirmed that some communities have declared a state of emergency, including French River, the Township of Chisholm and several on Manitoulin Island. * According to Ontario 511, several roads are closed in northeastern Ontario due to flooding. * Environment Canada is forecasting more rain for some areas in the coming days. Embed | Flood Alerts in Ontario Open full embed in new tab Loading external pages may require significantly more data usage than loading CBC Lite story pages. On Manitoulin Island, several communities remain under a State of Emergency due to flooding, and communities elsewhere across northeastern Ontario are coping with rising water levels as a large part of the region remains under a flood warning or watch. The advisories have been put in place by the Ministry of Natural Resources and local conservation authorities. Manitoulin Island Several communities on Manitoulin Island have declared states of emergency: * The Township of Assiginack. * The Township of Billings. * The Municipality of Central Manitoulin. * The Municipality of Gordon/Barrie Island. * Tehkummah Township. On Wednesday, Mindemoya Hospital closed due to flood conditions impacting its water and sewer services. * Flooding leads to Mindemoya hospital closure on Manitoulin Island On Friday, the Manitoulin Health Centre's president and CEO, Paula Fields, told CBC the hospital won't be able to reopen until sometime next week, but couldn't provide a firm date. She said patients at the hospital were transferred to beds in Espanola, Elliot Lake and Little Current. "It's with a heavy heart that we have to contact those patients and their loved ones to tell them they're being moved away from their loved ones, and that is very challenging," Fields said. "However, we received nothing but support from the community and from those patients' families." Public Health Sudbury & Districts issued a drinking water advisory for the Village of Mindemoya on Wednesday. As of Friday at 12 p.m., the drinking water advisory was still in effect. * Protecting homes and businesses from flooding in Central Manitoulin * Rain and heavy snow combine to create flooding across much of northeastern Ontario Volunteers helped to fill sandbags on Wednesday to protect businesses and homes in Central Manitoulin. They are looking for more volunteers, the municipality wrote on Friday around 10 a.m., to build up a surplus as more rain is expected Saturday. It wrote that there were still sandbags available for residents who need them. Image | Volunteers loading sandbags in Mindemoya, Ont. Caption: A truck dropped off a load of sand by the Mindemoya Hall Wednesday afternoon. (Faith Greco/CBC) (BUTTON) Load image Open image in new tab A women’s shelter in Mindemoya also had to close its doors this week due to severe flooding. On Tuesday, Manitoulin Family Resources, which offers a women's and children's shelter and a food bank, was forced to completely evacuate. “As soon as it became unsafe for the women and children to be in shelter, we immediately evacuated them,” said the organization’s executive director Colleen Hill. “Our emergency plan kicked in and we made sure that they were safely transported and are now in a safe place.” The organization is still providing services under several modifications, according to Hill. Staff continue to support clients outside of the shelter space and the food bank is also still operating, with volunteers helping distribute emergency food hampers at the nearby Municipal Complex Grounds. In the Township of Billings, Mayor Bryan Barker said there are a few community members who are stranded and the township is in contact with them. "They're content to stay where they are at this point," he said. "However, if they need assistance, we are available and ready to assist those people." Barker said the township is keeping an eye on a river in the community, which they expect will continue rising. He added the township is also in the process of doing temporary repairs on the roads and most of them are open again. Around 3 p.m. Thursday, Wiikwemkoong's emergency management group said temporary repairs were complete on some the roads that were earlier closed. People in the South Bay community who were previously evacuated are able to return home. The Township of Assiginack, on Manitoulin Island, posted Friday that the state of emergency was still in effect. Mayor Brenda Reid told CBC Thursday afternoon that crews were repairing washout sites and she was hopeful they would be able to lift the state of emergency within 48 hours. Sudbury area On Tuesday, Conservation Sudbury issued a flood warning for all watercourses and major rivers in Greater Sudbury. * Sudbury, North Bay grapple with rising water, flooding as warnings, watches continue in northeastern Ontario * A popular lodge in the Espanola area is dealing with a lot of flooding issues Conservation Sudbury general manager Carl Jorgensen said a significant winter storm in March added to the snowpack in the region, meaning there's about double the usual amount of water. Jorgensen said he expects flooding in Greater Sudbury this week to surpass high water levels from 2023. LISTEN | Conservation Sudbury provides update Friday morning: Media Audio | Morning North : Caption: It's been a banner year for snow, and as all that snow melts, combined with spring rain, conservation authorities are watching lakes, rivers, and creeks for signs of flooding. The head of Conservation Sudbury joined us in studio to talk about all this water. Open full embed in new tab Loading external pages may require significantly more data usage than loading CBC Lite story pages. On Thursday, the City of Greater Sudbury urged residents in low-lying areas to prepare for possible flooding. It wrote that crews and contractors have been clearing blocked culverts and storm drain grates to deal with pooling water. The City of Greater Sudbury has updated its list of flooding-related road closures. As of 11:15 p.m. on April 17, Kauppi Road, Molly's Road, Johnson Road, Boundary Road, Caruso Street, Larchmont Drive, part of Mikkola Road and the bridge section on Simmons Road had closed. Image | Flour Mill in Sudbury, Ont. high water Caption: (Jonathan Migneault/CBC) (BUTTON) Load image Open image in new tab North Bay and French River area On Wednesday, the City of North Bay said Thursday cleanup will be ongoing "over the coming days" after flooding on Tuesday and that the city will continue to monitor conditions as more rain is on the forecast. It also said Friday that the city is preparing sand and sandbags starting this weekend, as "the potential for flooding along the Lake Nipissing shoreline increases." * People in North Bay are recovering from flooded basements and home damage from this week's wet weather The Township of Chisholm, south of North Bay, declared a state of emergency on Thursday. It wrote online on Friday that the state of emergency is still in effect, there have been no improvement to roads and more rain is expected on Saturday. French River has also declared a state of emergency and the Mayor Gisele Pageau told CBC on Friday that 50 people have been forced out of their homes due to flooding. Pageau said she expects rain in the Temagami area over the weekend to melt snow which will swell rivers flowing south to their area. She said the province is sending volunteers this weekend to help fill sand bags. Image | Flooding 2026 Ontario French River sandbags Caption: (Yvon Theriault/CBC) (BUTTON) Load image Open image in new tab James Bay Coast Most of Kashechewan First Nation's 2,300 residents left months ago due to failures at the water treatment plant, but executive director Tyson Wesley told CBC on Friday the nation is now evacuating people still in the community as a precaution. Every spring, Kashechewan is at risk of flooding from the Albany River, but Wesley said this is a particularly risky year. A risk of flooding is also prompting chief and council in Moose Cree First Nation to prepare to airlift its most vulnerable citizens out of the island community in James Bay later this week. * Moose Cree First Nation is taking steps to protect its most vulnerable citizens as it faces a risk of flooding * Moose Cree First Nation preparing pre-emptive evacuation plan in face of flood risk PHOTOS | Flooding in northeastern Ontario: Photogallery | April flooding in northeastern Ontario Open full embed in new tab Loading external pages may require significantly more data usage than loading CBC Lite story pages. More Stories Like This The related links below are generated automatically based on the story you’ve just read. Loading... CBC Lite is a low-bandwidth website. To see what's new, check out our release notes. For high quality images, media, comments, and other additional features visit the full version of this story. 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