Military assistance requested as flooding hits downtown Fort McMurray

[daftandbarmy]

Which made sense when you had to fetch it in a bucket or be close enough to the water table for a shallow well handpump, or when the river was the primary method of transportation.  Most of modern day Fort McMurray dates back to the 1970s.

There are many hard lessons over the years about building on a floodplain.  The odd time we actually learn from them.

And then there's Calgary: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z_cXLT4X2UY

Granted, moving the whole city would be a bit tricky, but one of these days it's likely to get smashed even worse than in 2013.

 

[dapaterson]

There are many hard lessons over the years about building on a floodplain.  The odd time we actually learn from them.

The lesson we appear to have learned is that the government will always bail you out, even when insurers say "no way", so there's no problem in rebuilding, because governments have unlimited Other People's Money.

 

[daftandbarmy]

The lesson we appear to have learned is that the government will always bail you out, even when insurers say "no way", so there's no problem in rebuilding, because governments have unlimited Other People's Money.

Like those riverfront golf courses with the $1m greens that need to be replaced?