THUNDER BAY – One of Thunder Bay’s top attractions is ready to reopen after suffering severe flooding earlier this month.
The Fort William Historical Park is once again available for weddings and conferences, it announced Tuesday, and will reopen to guided tours and campground use on Friday, June 3.
Full programmed activities will resume on Canada Day, with summer day camps proceeding as planned through July and August.
General manager Patrick Morash said while things won't quite be back to normal until July, visitors who arrive later this week will still get the trademark FWHP experience.
“Many of the buildings that people are familiar with that will be part of the walking tours starting on June 3 will be available, and they’ll look just like they always have," he said. "People may notice there’s some other cleanup activity taking place in other areas of the fort, but otherwise it will look fairly normal.”
The site was under about one metre of water, Morash said, after being inundated by the Kaministiquia River on May 12 as heavy rains combined with the spring thaw.
The floodwaters left behind a layer of silt that's been the focus of clean-up efforts, but little in the way of permanent damage to buildings or equipment, Morash said.
"I'm thrilled to be at the point where we are right now," he said. "So many people have seen the photo and the drone footage of how the place looked. To think just over two weeks ago we were in [that] situation, to where we are today is really a testament to the dedication of the staff we have here."
While he couldn't provide an exact estimate of cleanup costs, Morish said it appears the financial toll will be "minimal" and much less than for some previous instances of flooding.
"I've been very pleasantly surprised that this cleanup post-flood isn't going to be particularly expensive," he said.
The fort prepares for flooding annually in the fall, he said, including by relocating historic items from flood-prone areas. The FWHP's roughly 50 farm animals were also moved higher ground well before flooding occurred.
The response is nothing new for the park, which has seen its 250-acre site on the banks of the Kaministiquia flood on several occasions since opening in 1973.
The province has spent over $20 million on flood mitigation and repairs in that time, it says.
The park had been set to start its regular seasonal hours on the weekend of May 21 before flooding occurred. Major events planned for the summer will not be impacted.
Going forward, staff said they’ll continue to monitor water levels, noting flooding is still impacting many areas around Thunder Bay.
