September 18, 2026
The City of Weyburn continues to review the impacts of the significant Sept. 7 rainfall event, which caused widespread flooding and damage to properties and infrastructure across the community.
City crews worked alongside emergency services throughout as conditions changed rapidly across Weyburn.
Crews responded to areas experiencing rising water and sewer backups, closed flooded roads and redirected traffic, cleared debris that was being carried toward storm drains, and monitored critical infrastructure.
Response continued in the days that followed, with crews addressing ongoing sewer backups, flushing and inspecting sewer mains and catch basins, and cleaning up washouts, debris and other flood-related impacts.
“Many of the people responding that day were also dealing with water approaching their own homes or backups in their own basements,” said Director of Engineering Renee Cugnet.
“Some returned home after hours of flood response to find their own properties affected, then came back the next day to continue the work. I’m incredibly proud of how our staff and departments came together during an extremely difficult event.”
What the City knows
Environment and Climate Change Canada recorded approximately 85 millimetres of rain over the 24-hour period ending the following morning, while other precipitation monitoring in the Weyburn area reported totals closer to 107 millimetres.
Flooding impacts developed rapidly during the late morning and around midday, when intense rainfall produced a large volume of runoff across the community.
Weyburn has separate stormwater and sanitary sewer systems. The stormwater system collects rain and surface runoff and carries it to the Souris River. The sanitary system carries wastewater from homes and businesses to the City’s main lift station and then to the wastewater treatment lagoons.
Like many communities across the province, parts of Weyburn’s storm and sanitary sewer networks were built to standards from an earlier era and predate current drainage practices.
On Sept. 7, rainfall exceeded the amount the stormwater system could collect and move immediately, causing water to accumulate on streets, properties and other low-lying areas.
Stormwater also entered the sanitary sewer network, adding significant volume to a system designed to carry wastewater from homes and businesses.
The City’s lift stations remained operational and stormwater outlets to the river remained open. However, the added stormwater exceeded the sanitary system’s designed capacity, causing sewer levels to rise and contributing to backups in some properties.
What is still being investigated
The City is still determining where and how stormwater entered the sanitary system and why impacts varied across the community.
Parts of Weyburn’s sewer network are more than 60 years old and include materials common at the time, such as clay tile pipes and brick manholes. Potential pathways for stormwater to enter the sanitary system include manholes, aging pipes, cross-connections, groundwater seepage and sump pumps or weeping tile systems connected to the sanitary sewer.
These are potential sources of infiltration and do not mean the City has determined that any one source caused the backups experienced on Sept. 7.
The City is reviewing operational and infrastructure information from the event, including how local sewer networks performed, how water moved through the system and pumping capacity at key points.
“We know this is a complex system and there will not be one simple answer,” said Cugnet. “Our engineering work is focused on collecting the data, understanding how water moved through the network and identifying practical solutions to the community-wide capacity issues we are seeing.”
Information submitted through the Community Flood Impact Survey will be reviewed alongside engineering data, infrastructure assessments and operational information to help identify patterns and areas requiring further investigation.
The City recognizes that flooding did not affect every property or neighbourhood in the same way. Understanding those differences is an important part of determining what occurred within the overall system.
“Sept. 7 had a significant impact on residents and businesses across Weyburn, and we know people have questions about what happened and what comes next,” said Mayor Jeff Richards. “Residents deserve clear information about what we know, what we are still working to understand and how that information will guide the decisions ahead.”
Maintaining and improving the network
Weyburn has approximately 100 kilometres of underground sewer infrastructure. Maintaining and improving a network of that scale requires long-term planning, ongoing maintenance and targeted capital investment.
Over the past five years, the City has increased sewer maintenance and rehabilitation, including manhole and sewer line repairs, flushing and inspection programs. Engineering modelling and system assessments are also used to identify constraints and prioritize improvements through the annual capital planning process.
This work is part of the City’s ongoing effort to improve how water moves through the system and address pumping capacity at key points.
Recent capital project work has included replacing three major stormwater culvert outlets to the Souris River in partnership with the Ministry of Highways, as well as replacing the storm main on 16th St. and upgrading the wastewater lagoon receiving chamber and transfer pump station.
In 2025, Council approved amendments to the Sewer Bylaw prohibiting clear water waste from being directed into the sanitary sewer system.
The City has also worked with the Water Security Agency (WSA) on flood hazard mapping, with a WSA-led study completed in 2023 to support community planning. Following changes to provincial flood standards in 2025, the City and WSA also discussed additional 1:200-year flood hazard mapping.
“Council needs clear, reliable information to make decisions about infrastructure,” said Cugnet. “Our job as staff is to build that picture through operational data, engineering analysis, system modelling, infrastructure assessments and the information we are gathering from residents. That work will help identify where improvements are needed and inform future capital priorities.”
In 2027, engineering design work is planned for additional upgrades to local sewer networks, how water moves through the system and pumping capacity at key points.
“We cannot redesign or replace an entire underground network at once,” said Mayor Richards. “The work is to understand the data, make the most effective improvements we can and continue investing in the system over time.”