'It has to end': Flood victim fed up with having to repeat buyout process

A Gatineau, Que., woman is fed up with the Quebec government after learning she has to repeat the buyout process for her flood-damaged home, more than a year after first being offered money to walk away.

Louise Duplessis's home on boulevard Hurtubisewas one of thousands of homes affected by rising river levels this past spring.

• Spring flooding in Ottawa-Gatineau, by the numbers

It was also the second time in the past two-and-a-half years she's experienced flood damage to her home,as it was also hit by the 2017 spring floods that devastatedthe region.

Both times, it wasgroundwater rising morethan a metre through her basement floor that caused most of the destruction, but the floodwaters themselves also damaged her property.

'Let me get out of here'

After the 2017floods, Duplessisprovided the province with numerous documents, from a mould report to an engineering report on her home.

She said that engineering report showed 11 cracks in her foundation, damage that wouldcost $260,000 to repair because the house would have to be raised, a new foundation laid down and repairs made to the basement and drywall.

In February 2018, Quebec's public security ministry offered her $200,000 for her home and $50,000for her land.

I've done everything they've requested. Everything.- Louise Duplessis

Shethen received a demolition permit from the City of Gatineau. But before she could tear down her house, it flooded again in May 2019.

"We panicked. It's like, 'No, we can't go through this again. ... I'm exhausted," Duplessis said.

"I begged them, please, finalize my file. Let me get out of here. I got to get out. We can't do this again. They told us we had no choice."

Living with her brother

Duplessis said she was told she would have to start the whole buyout processagain.

"This has been going on for two-and-a-half years. That's not acceptable. Not after everything I have done here," she said.

"I've done everything they've requested. Everything."

Since the 2017 flooding,Duplessis and her husband have been shuffled between hotel rooms andtemporaryfurnished apartments. They've also spent nearly eight months staying inher brother's one-bedroom apartment, while he sleeps on the couch.

She said she doesn't want to move back into her home while she waits for a decision on her file, asshe received a mould report last week showing there could be elevated levels of penicilliumand/or apergillus spores in the basement.

Ministry says payouts underway

In a French-language statement to CBC Ottawa, the Ministre de la Scurit publique du Qubec, which administers the disaster relief program, said all "eligible disaster victims"have received monetary advances to begin repair work.

A ministry spokesperson told CBC News that flood victims seeking compensation including those like Duplessis who are hoping forbuyouts have had to reapply because the details of the program have changed since the 2019 floods.

The City of Gatineau has approved six demolition permits related to the 2019 floods and another permit is being assessed, spokesperson Yves Melanson said.

Duplessis said she hasn't yet received a new demolition permit,however. She also said she's been denied insurance money because her homeowners' insurance doesn't cover damage from overland flooding, which has forced her to relyon government assistance.

For now, Duplessis wants an end an ordeal that's has been taking a toll on her mental health.

"We're still trying to keep our heads up, still trying to have a little hope, a little light somewhere," she said.

"I'm just wishing for it to end so I can start healing."