Small northern Ontario municipality hit with $470K bill following a severe storm

The small northern Ontario Municipality of Calvin is on the hook for $470,000 in road repairs that followed a storm and downburst on June 21.

Calvin Mayor Richard Gould said the repair bill amounts to nearly a quarter of the municipality's $2.4-million annual budget.

To cover the cost, he said the municipality had to cash out a bond, borrow around $200,000 and extend its line of credit.

Gould said the municipality is applying for emergency funding from the province to help cover the costs, but he heard from neighbouring municipalities that it can take up to two years for the money to become available.

"It's hard to think of how we're going to deal with things if it takes two years to get the finances back," he said.

Gould said ratepayers will likely see an increase to their property taxes to help pay back the loans used for the repairs.

He said that Nipissing MPP Vic Fedeli, who is also Ontario's minister of economic development, job creation and trade, has been actively helping the municipality apply for emergency funding.

The storm that hit the municipality in June devastated Samuel de Champlain Provincial Park, which is at the eastern edge of Calvin.

A downburst levelled thousands of trees that crushed trailers and tents, and injured some campers.

Gould said the municipality's emergency responders, including firefighters and paramedics, helped evacuate 300 people from the park the night of the storm.

"And this evacuation came at a cost because of course, you have to call in the Red Cross. You have to set up an arena. You had staff, you had meals, you had bus transportation," he said.

Cameron Hockey, the manager of the Algonquin Zone of Ontario Parks, previously told CBC News there is no timeline on when the park can reopen.

"The number one priority right now is just to be able to provide that safe access for people to come on site and to grab their personal property," he said.