By Cecilia Nasmith/Today’s Northumberland
With Victoria Day weekend ahead, Ontario Power Generation, the Ontario Provincial Police and Parks Canada Agency remind residents and tourists in the Municipality of Trent Hills to take extreme caution and exercise sound judgment around water – especially when near hydroelectric stations and dams, which can be dangerous.
The risk is especially high along the Trent Severn Waterway, where the hydroelectric stations and control dams are capable of passing hundreds of cubic metres of water per second. River flows and water levels can change quickly as a result, and dry spillways can become fast-flowing rivers at a moment’s notice. Sometimes this may even happen without warning, which could result in a person being stranded without an escape route or even swept into strong currents.
OPG and PCA have erected signage and barriers to restrict access to areas of the Trent River that are not safe for recreation.
One example is the area in Campbellford around OPG’s Ranney Falls Generating Station, including the whitewater area just upstream of the Trent River. Despite continued warnings, some people have been entering the area and potentially exposing themselves to extreme danger due to the possibility that water levels and flows can change quickly. OPG and PCA will be working with the OPP this summer to enforce these warnings. Constable Simpson of the Northumberland OPP reminds you that those found trespassing can be charged under the Trespass To Property Act.
“We urge the public to enjoy the outdoors safely by following signs, fences, booms, buoys and barriers at dams and along their surrounding shorelines,” Parks Canada Director of Ontario Waterways David Britton urged.
“Public safety is of the utmost importance to us at OPG,” Campbellford Service Centre Work Centre Manager Ed Loghrin said.
“Whether people are boating, swimming or fishing, we need everyone to understand the dangers of fast-moving water and respect all warning signs, fences and other safety barriers that are in place to protect the public.”
The OPP, OPG and PCA want everyone to enjoy a summer full of fun (and safe) activities on the water, but always remember – stay clear, stay safe and (as we all work to reduce the spread of COVID-19) stay distanced while doing so.
Before setting out to enjoy any outdoor recreational activity, OPG advises you to first visit www.opg.com/watersafety.
