Southern Alberta Floods: Calgary, Canmore among hard hit communities (how you can help)

A quiet creek in downtown Canmore, Alberta in 2010. Photo by Sue Frause.

In July of 2010, I went on a nine-day Travel Alberta culinary adventure, flying from Seattle to Edmonton and wending our way all the way south to Canmore, Calgary and Banff. Both Canmore and Calgary, along with other communities in the province, have been severely hit by the June 2013 flooding. One of my friends posted a picture on Facebook of her lovely home in Calgary on June 21, which she and her family had to evacuate. It included these heartfelt words:

"Thank you to everyone for all the kind emails and messages. It's a sad day in Calgary and the most devastating thing I've ever seen first hand. Not sure what will happen with our house, but do feel blessed to be safe with my family in the company of good friends. Calgary officials have handled this crisis with grace and precision and I'm incredibly proud to be a Calgarian today. Will keep you posted."  

Some Calgary neighborhoods are reopening, but it could be midweek before downtown Calgary is back in business. The Scotiabank Saddledome is underwater (and the Calgary Stampede in jeopardy) and other areas have been hit hard, as seen is these before and after photos. The RCMP reports that three people are been confirmed dead in the High River area.

The Canadian Red Cross is accepting financial donations for those affected by the flooding in Alberta, you can donate online. In less than 48 hours, the CRD raised $2.1 million. I've been following updates on the flooding via Twitter (#ABFlood), and CBC Calgary has a good link with more ways to help the affected communities. 

Downtown Calgary may not open until next week. Photo by Sue Frause (July 2010).