New Brunswick·NewThe City of Bathurst began drainage and de-icing efforts on Saturday evening, using pumps and plows to clear the water and ice.City used pumps and plows to clear the water and iceRhythm Rathi · CBC News · Posted: Dec 07, 2025 4:57 PM EST | Last Updated: 33 minutes agoListen to this articleEstimated 3 minutesThe audio version of this article is generated by text-to-speech, a technology based on artificial intelligence.Bathurst resident Jane Moore says she had never seen the water level in the area rise so fast. (Réal Fradette/Radio-Canada)The Queen Elizabeth Drive area near Youghall Beach in Bathurst, N.B., got flooded by Saturday’s high tide.Resident Jane Moore has lived in the area for almost a decade now. But it was her first time seeing such a quick rise in the water level, she said.”We were walking towards that intersection … and the water was just coming completely over the embankment. It was just flooding like a waterfall coming over and it just kept rising and rising,” she said. “We have a property that’s adjacent to the road and it was coming up our driveway at a very quick rate.”Moore said the sight made her anxious.She said her house was built at a certain height because it is in a flood-prone area, and she tried to keep calm and hope for the best.Saturday’s low temperature resulted in ice formation, leaving Moore stuck in her house waiting for the roads to be cleared.”The ice is all over the place, so we’re just waiting for the city to come and help us out,” she said.City crews used pumps and plows to clear the flooded road. (Réal Fradette/Radio-Canada)Beresford resident Dave Grebenc said he faced a similar issue on his drive to Bathurst.Luc Foulem, a spokesperson for the City of Bathurst, said drainage and de-icing efforts began on Saturday evening.City crews used pumps to get water off the streets as the tides receded, he said. Two plows were used to clear the ice buildup and salt the area.The drainage operation continued overnight on Saturday, extending into Sunday afternoon, he said.Foulem said such an amount of water in Bathurst was “not seen in a number of years.”Environment Canada had issued a coastal flooding statement for the Bathurst and Chaleur region on Saturday afternoon. Several other areas in northern New Brunswick were also included.The draining and de-icing of the road continued through the night Saturday, extending into Sunday afternoon, said city spokesperson Luc Foulem. (Réal Fradette/Radio-Canada)Environment Canada meteorologist Roberta McArthur said the area saw some of the highest tides on Saturday due to a lunar cycle that happens every 18 years. Currently the moon cycle is at its peak but residents will eventually start to notice a drop in water levels later in December, she said.”We are just in a particular lunar phase with the full moon,” McArthur said.”We did see the full moon the past couple of nights, so tides are going to be higher anyway just due to that, but because of the alignment of the Earth and the moon … this time of year than at other times, that gives an added effect of even higher tidal range,” she said.McArthur said the water levels did not increase further as the weather remained calm, without any storm surges.She said the floods did not qualify for an emergency alert.ABOUT THE AUTHORRhythm Rathi is a reporter with CBC New Brunswick in Moncton. He was born and raised in India, and attended journalism school in Ontario. Send your story tips to rhythm.rathi@cbc.ca With files from Réal Fradette, Radio-Canada
High tides due to lunar cycle cause minor flooding in Bathurst area
