When water levels are on the move, so are Maugerville horses

It's one thing to move your personal belongings in a flood. It's something entirely different when more than a dozen horses have to be moved.

Last week, as the St. John River started to rise, Ashley Lawrence tried to find refuge for horses being boarded at her Connolly Canadian Equestrian stables in Maugerville.

With the help of the owners, it took two days to move all 14 horses, with the animals wading up to their knees as they headed for drier land. 

With the water still high, Lawrence said it's going to be a while before it's safe for the animals to return. 

The horses were taken to stables in Hampton, Lincoln, the Royal Road and the Exhibition Grounds in Fredericton.

"It's kind of a pick and choose ... what's going to work for each owner and their own horse," she said.

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It wasn't the first time the St. John River forced Lawrence to act.

"The first year they didn't know what was going on," she said of the horses. "But that year, they were up to their bellies in water inside the barn before we had a plan to evacuate."

No backup plan 

In 2005, Lawrence was caught off guard. She said the river came up quickly and she didn't have a backup plan.

"Every time we do it we get a bit better at it," she said. "We learn what works, what doesn't [and] just to keep everybody safe."

Lawrence marks the water levels in the Maugerville barn. If it gets to a certain height, it's time to get out. And that means taking the feed and all the machinery too.

"Life still has to function as usual," she said. "We still have to feed chickens and get to work and try to maintain all the horses, we're still caring for at various locations."  

She's hoping to get the horses back in the barn next week, but it depends on the water.

"It can cause destruction if we put [the horses] out while we still have water and deep mud," she said.

"I think we're going to come out good this year. A little bit of water's OK."

Stuck with places to go

While the Maugerville horses were forced to move, one woman on Darlings Island can't move at all.

"It's been extremely difficult," said Darlene Mattina, who lives on the island between Quispamsis and Hampton.

We feel abandoned over here.-Darlene Mattina

Mattina said the flooded road is barricaded with heavy steel, and residents have to wade through flood waters to get from one side to the other.

"We're trapped on this side of the barricades and we have to get to the other side of the barricades through the flood waters at various times of the day," said Mattina, a nurse who needs to get to her job early in the morning.  

Mattina said she had to drag her sick son through knee-deep water so he could get to a doctor's appointment. Residents can't get their mail or their garbage picked or get to appointments. She said businesses in the area are also losing money.

"We feel abandoned over here," said Mattina, who's lived on the island for about a year.

"Being a nurse, I'm very concerned about the safety on this side … what if these people need an ambulance? ... This a huge safety issue here."

She wants the road fixed soon, since most people on the island are small children or over 50. 

"This is just inhuman," she said.