Furniture Assistance Initiative helps residents recover from July 1 extreme weather event
I recently approached our friends at Matthew House with a suggestion: help replaced furniture that was destroyed by flooding with furniture that has been generously donated.
It was a suggestion that Matthew House ran with, and recently the City included them in this important announcement. Many thanks to Matthew House for taking this on.
Since the July 1 extreme weather event, City staff and community partners have been working directly with affected residents to understand their needs and connect them with available supports. A new initiative will help extend that support to eligible households whose essential furniture was damaged or destroyed by flooding.
The City of Ottawa is partnering with Habitat for Humanity Greater Ottawa and Matthew House Ottawa to implement an Extreme Weather Event Furniture Assistance Initiative. The initiative will provide gently used donated furniture to eligible households facing the greatest challenges on the road to recovery.
The initiative was informed by thousands of conversations with residents since the extreme weather event occurred.
Many families continue to face difficult decisions and unexpected costs as they work to rebuild. This initiative is an example of how the City, community organizations, volunteers and residents are coming together to help people get back on their feet and move forward.
Due to the limited availability of donated furniture, assistance will be prioritized for eligible households with the greatest financial need, including residents whose essential household items – including beds, couches and other furnishings - were damaged or destroyed and who may face financial or other barriers to replacing them.
The City will follow up with people identified through wellness visits and service requests who may benefit from this initiative. Residents who have not been contacted but require furniture assistance as a result of the July 1 extreme weather event are encouraged to call 3-1-1 to inquire about the initiative and have their needs assessed.
The initiative reflects the collaborative effort underway across Ottawa to support flood-affected residents. Habitat for Humanity Greater Ottawa and Matthew House Ottawa are helping coordinate furniture donations and distribution, while City staff continue outreach efforts to identify residents who may benefit from additional support.
The City extends its sincere appreciation to Habitat for Humanity Greater Ottawa, Matthew House Ottawa, volunteers, donors and community partners whose generosity is helping residents rebuild after the flooding.
Additional support available
Since the onset of the emergency response, City staff and community partners, including St. John Ambulance and Sauvetage Bénévole Outaouais – Ottawa Volunteer Search and Rescue (SBO-OVSAR), have conducted more than 6,000 wellness visits and 500 follow-up calls to check on residents' well-being and connect them with the specific services and supports they need.
Recovery support information, including available assistance programs and upcoming Recovery Information Sessions, is available on our website.
Do you know someone who deserves extra recognition?
“Earlier this summer I launched the Neighbour Awards, where folks can nominate a neighbour in College Ward for a good deed they have done in our community to receive a certificate of recognition from my office.
Since the storm on July 1st, my heart has been so full as neighbours tell me every day about the help they’ve received from each other during this difficult time.
If there is someone you’d like to nominate, here is the link to do so: Neighbour Awards - Laine Johnson, College Ward.
Please note that submissions received after August 1st will receive their award later this Fall.
What’s next with sewer and stormwater facilities?
I’m hearing from a lot of residents who want answers about why flooding happened, and how we can prevent it from happening again. I certainly want those answers as well.
There won’t be a simple fix. 25 neighbourhoods have been dramatically affected and each had their own particular contexts. The City needs to examine the different local factors that may have contributed to flooding.
I brought a motion to last week’s City Council meeting listing many of our local concerns. It includes questions about the maintenance of aging infrastructure, large-scale construction projects, and more paving and infill, but you can read the full motion (and some other work I did at Council) on my website. I want to know when the City releases its neighbourhood-by-neighbourhood analysis, these factors are also considered and recommendations made that reflect those local circumstances.
Without a doubt, regardless of the circumstance, the amount of rainfall in a very short period will be a significant cause of the damage. This was the single worst rainfall in the history of our region. We’re seeing more extreme weather, as climate scientists told us we would. Climate change is real and we’re feeling its effects.
Our systems for dealing with regular rainstorms fell short of being able to deal with the overwhelming amount of water that fell. Those systems are largely planned for “worst case” scenarios, but no one imagined a worst case that could be as bad as what hit us on July 1.
The General Manager assured us at Council that they are recalibrating their baseline of what is typical and will make recommendations based on that new interpretation.
It will take some months to evaluate what happened in each neighbourhood, but I promise you that the investigation is already underway.
There are many short-term solutions like cleaning out culverts, better maintaining creek flow, and rehabilitating our existing ditch systems. There will likely be localized infrastructure improvements recommended as well, that will take a longer time, and more money, to get done. Improving our systems will be an engineering challenge, but also a political one, as we seek provincial and federal funding to help pay for better protections for our homes, businesses, and facilities.
I will continue to monitor staff’s investigations and to report their findings to you over the coming months. And I will fight for the resources we need to protect our homes from another disaster of this proportion.
Ottawa Hydro: The Home Renovations Savings Program
The Home Renovations Savings Program helps homeowners save on energy-efficient upgrades like insulation, windows, heat pumps, and smart thermostats. With rebates and incentives, the program makes renovations more affordable, lowers energy use, improves home comfort, and supports a cleaner, more sustainable energy future.
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Learn more
Graham Creek - update and next steps
During the July 1 torrential rain, several of our local creeks, which are usually tiny, quiet waterways, turned into wide, roaring rivers. The City will be looking at each of them to explore how better maintenance, channel conditions, and addressing erosion might prevent future problems.
First up is Graham Creek and I have received a preliminary report on the City's findings:
Completed
• staff have completed a visual inspection of Graham Creek following the July 1 storm event.
• Multiple locations along the creek corridor were assessed, with observations and photographs collected to document erosion, debris accumulation, channel conditions, and other storm-related impacts.
• Initial reviews of resident concerns and flooding reports within the Graham Creek watershed have begun.
Ongoing
• Staff are mapping the entire Creek to document public and private ownership along the corridor in one consolidated location
• Drone-based aerial surveying is planned and will begin shortly.
• Staff are assessing the performance of Graham Creek during the storm, including creek flows, erosion impacts, and interactions with the stormwater and sewer systems.
• Flood-related service requests, resident reports, field observations, and inspection findings are being analyzed to better understand flooding mechanisms and contributing factors.
• Coordination is underway with the Rideau Valley Conservation Authority and engineering consultants to support the technical review and identify potential mitigation measures.
• Previous flood studies, historical records, and existing flood mitigation measures are being reviewed to assess how the system performed during this extreme weather event
Next Steps
• Integrate field inspection findings with the broader city-wide post-event analysis.
• Identify potential public and private resilience measures and potential infrastructure improvements.
• Develop recommendations to improve flood resilience within the Graham Creek watershed, with findings incorporated into the City's overall post-event review.
Help with insurance claims
If you suffered from water damage to your property because of the recent flooding, and have questions or concerns about your insurance claim, there is free, independent, and impartial help available from the General Insurance OmbudService (GIO).
GIO is an independent body set up to help Canadians find a fair resolution to disputes with insurance providers. You must first try to resolve your dispute with your insurer, but if you are not satisfied with the ultimate decision from your provider on your claim, GIO can help resolve your dispute.
Contact GIO
Learn more
Canadian Red Cross support
The Canadian Red Cross has launched the 2026 Ottawa Floods Appeal to provide support for those impacted by flooding in Ottawa
IF YOU NEED HELP AFTER FLOODING: email [email protected] or leave a voicemail at 1-800-863-6582. Calls will be returned within two days.
More information and resources to help those impacted in their recovery are available at the Canadian Red Cross website.
IF YOU CAN MAKE A DONATION: look for the 2026 Ottawa Floods Appeal online or by calling 1-800-418-1111. Donations to the Canadian Red Cross will be used to provide assistance to those impacted by the flooding in and around the Ottawa area with immediate and ongoing relief, recovery, and resilience efforts in response to the floods, as well as community preparedness and risk reduction for future all-hazard disaster events within Ottawa and the surrounding area. Funds will also be used to support mobilization of response and community partners.
Storm-related debris collection update - Contact 311
We know that residents are moving through the clean-up process at different speeds. While some are ready to dispose of flood-damaged materials, others are still working through insurance assessments, documenting damage, or making decisions about repairs.
Beginning Monday, residents will be encouraged to submit a service request to 311 when they are ready for pickup. This helps us know when assistance is needed and allows crews to respond when it makes the most sense for each household. You can submit a service request for garbage collection online or call 311.
We'll still have dedicated trucks circulating the impacted neighbourhoods picking up anything they see. But submitting a request to 311 will make sure you get a pickup as soon as possible.
Household Hazardous Waste drop-off
The City of Ottawa is hosting a Household Hazardous Waste drop-off event on Saturday, July 25, 2026 at Kanata Research Park, 373 Leggett Drive. Residents are welcome to bring their hazardous materials to the event between 8 am and 4 pm.
You don’t have to wait for event day—many items can be returned year-round to nearby retailers. Check the City’s Waste Explorer to find daily drop-off options.
Please note that electronic waste is not accepted at Household Hazardous Waste drop-off events hosted by the City. Residents can bring electronic waste to retailers by checking the Ottawa Waste Explorer. They can also attend electronic waste drop-off events hosted by Junk That Funk.
Residents are reminded to safely prepare batteries before bringing them to HHW events or drop-off locations. Some batteries require terminal protection, so when in doubt, tape the terminals to reduce fire risk.
Learn more
You can use your flood-related Service Request Number as a temporary parking permit
By-law and Regulatory Services has already provided direction to enforcement staff to exercise temporary parking enforcement discretion in neighbourhoods affected by the recent event, while clean-up and restoration efforts are ongoing.
After a fabulous suggestion by a College Ward resident, homeowners are being encouraged to print a copy of their 311 Service Request (SR#) and provide it to any property assessment or restoration contractors working at their residence.
Contractors should place the document on their vehicle dashboard or windshield to help identify that they are supporting recovery efforts at the property. We are also asking that all vehicles continue to be parked safely and in a manner that does not create a hazard or obstruction, ie. blocking a fire hydrant, as this consideration applies only where vehicles are parked appropriately.
Call, write, and stay up to date
As City Councillor, my team and I can help you with issues that fall within the municipal areas of responsibility: local traffic calming; infrastructure like sidewalks, roads, and bike lanes; municipal tax statements; some social services; parks and recreation; and more. Please note that I cannot help you with parking tickets or other provincial infractions - to attempt to do so is illegal.
Here's how to stay up to date on College Ward news and events, and to contact me:
E-mail: [email protected]
Website: college-ward.ca
Pour nous appeler, nous écrire et vous informer
Mon équipe et moi, en tant que conseillère municipale, pouvons vous aider avec les questions qui relèvent des domaines de responsabilité municipale : la modération de la circulation locale, les infrastructures comme les trottoirs, les routes et les bandes cyclables, les relevés d’imposition municipale, certains services sociaux, les parcs et services récréatifs et plus encore. Veuillez noter que je ne peux vous aider en ce qui concerne les contraventions de stationnement ou les infractions provinciales – le faire serait illégal.
Pour connaître les nouvelles et événements du quartier Collège et communiquer avec moi :
Courriel : [email protected]
Site Web : quartier-college.ca
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