'Biggest rain event I've ever seen': Cleanup underway after massive 24-hour rain in Southwestern Ontario

London, Ont. -

Elgin County Farmer Jim Temple was in shock when he checked his rain gauge Saturday morning.

"I knew we were getting some good weather, but when I came out and saw a 5.2 inches in the gauge that just blew me away," says Temple from his farm near Sparta, Ont.

"This is, this is the biggest rain event at one time I've ever seen in my life,” he says. “This is definitely aggressive, but we are very fortunate that the crops are this far along as they can take more water when they get established. Ideally we can order an inch, or an inch and a half every two weeks was 28 or 30 degree weather but of course we don't have that control.”

Temple also feels its lucky the ground has been dry, and the topography allows run off because standing crops can survive for 24-48 hours underwater.

Rain Gauge shows 132 mm of rain in Sparta, Ont. on Saturday, June 26, 2021. (Brent Lale/CTV London)

When it comes to being underwater, that's the case for many areas in the region. In Port Stanley, Ont. many residents spent the morning pumping water out of their basements. On Erie Street and South Street people were scrambling to get between 3-5 inches of water out of their homes.

"You have to make sure that you've got a good sized sump pad and a good sized sump pump, and as long as we don't lose power, we're good," says Dennis McInnis, who was helping neighbours put drainage tiles to bring the water farther away from low lying areas.

McInnis installed a big pump after his first flood 25 years ago.

“Call the insurance companies right off the bat, they'll get down and they'll help clean up or actually they'll do the cleanup. So, which is something I didn't realize at first time. A lot of people either weren't prepared and a big thing is you're just helpless. Once it starts to fly, you're toast,” he says.

Many golf courses in the region were forced to close Saturday due to unexpected water hazards. With plenty more rain expected this week, it could be a difficult stretch for golfers and for those whose job it is to maintain the course.

"You try to protect the golfers from themselves," says Wade Beaudoin, superintendent at St. Thomas Golf and Country Club.

"They want to play, and we'd love them to be able to come out and play, but at the same time we have to maintain the golf course for the rest of the season so that they can enjoy it for that time as well,” Beaudoin says.

Unexpected water hazards at St. Thomas Golf and Country Club in Union, Ont. Saturday June 26, 2021

The drainage was working well at the private course in Union, Ont.  but Beaudoin joked that when he arrived early Saturday he could have “taken a boat across the 14th hole.”

"There's been a lot of water damage to the golf course this morning with bunker wash outs and blowing out drains,” he says. “From a maintenance standpoint we did what we could to prepare for it. We vented the greens, opened up the greens profiles to oxygen to try to keep water moving. You don't want to get into a anaerobic conditions where you start to suffer root loss at this time of the year because we need those roots to get us through the summer.”

​And while many people were feeling the effects of the massive rainfall, Bernice Noles and her daughter Brice took advantage of the flooding by bringing a paddleboard onto the street in Port Stanley.

"The paddleboard was just in the backyard and it was just a good chance for her to get outside," says Noles. 

"She was having a ball, she loves paddle boarding, and we haven't done it yet this year. Our basements are flooded so we just tried to make the best of a bad situation.”

Water being pumped out of a home in Port Stanley, Ont. Saturday June 26, 2021. (Brent Lale/CTV London)