Flood watch in Durham due to 'frazzle ice' buildup

Eyes will be soon be on the Saugeen River flowing through Durham around the clock to monitor a concerning ice jam.

“We do anticipate moving to 24-hour monitoring of the river, at least from the Saugeen Valley Conservation Authority (SVCA) point of things. As long as it takes, as long as this condition persists, which is very cold air, and a river that's generating frazzle ice,” said SVCA General Manager Erik Downing.

Frazzle ice is a problem in Durham. In 1997, 200 people were forced from their homes and over $1 million in damage was done after a frazzle ice jam backed up the Saugeen River into people’s backyards and basements.

“It's just not the typical sheet ice that most people are aware, where you have a sheet of ice, you know, in the spring melt, that’ll break up and then get stuck somewhere. This is actually, sort of slushy, gummy ice that is formed as the river just flows naturally through the winter during very cold, cold periods, and it has the propensity to get blocked or gum up in certain areas,” said Downing.

Downing said the next two weeks fit the bill for the creation of frazzle ice, which is why the Municipality of West Grey has heavy equipment on standby, in case the ice jam worsens and needs to dig out jammed up ice from the waters edge, because no one wants a repeat of the 1997 frazzle ice flood.

Frazzle ice flows through Saugeen River in Durham on Jan. 7, 2025. (Scott Miller/CTV News London)

“In 1997, it was close to a disaster. We came very close to even losing Highway 6 through town, and the bridge that goes over Highway 6 here and whatnot. We were within a half a foot of that,” said West Grey Mayor Kevin Eccles, back in November.

The potential frazzle ice flooding comes as the SVCA just ended a 20-year project designed to limit frazzle ice in Durham by putting up boards to block water at Durham’s Upper Dam.

Concerns over potentially breaking the concrete dam prompted the November 2024 decision, said Downing. He said while they are now dealing with the return of frazzle ice, he thinks the dam could have failed during this most recent spate of winter weather.

Frazzle ice causing potential “ice jam” in Saugeen River in Durham on Jan. 7, 2025. (Scott Miller/CTV News London)

“We'll never know, but it certainly could have been confirming the decision that was made, that it (Durham’s Upper Dam) couldn't do what it was doing over time, because it would have had all those loading pressures put onto it and could have been in a failure situation, as our experts were telling us. And, so ultimately, we've avoided that. But yes, now we have frazzle ice, as we've seen many times in Durham, and we're monitoring that situation,” said Downing.

A flood watch, enacted on Sunday, Jan. 5, will remain in effect, until at least Jan. 20, according to the SVCA.