Deschênes Rapids ruins : Ministry of Transports suspends demolition project

The Quebec Ministry of Transports (MTQ) has decided to suspend its plans to demolish the Deschênes rapids ruins after discussions with kayakers’ associations leading to the proposal of a development project, revealed André Fortin, MNA for Pontiac, to the Bulletin. According to him, the project was satisfying and interesting enough to be studied as an alternative to the controversial demolition plan.

The development project currently being discussed at the provincial level focuses on the preservation and enhancement of the heritage value of the ruins, as well as on the increase in security measures necessary to make the site a safe place to practice nautical sports. The decision to consider a solution other than the demolition of the ruins is the latest twist in the convoluted saga around the future of the site, that was started when the Service de sécurité incendie de Gatineau contacted the MTQ to make them aware of the danger their property posed for the intervention team and the boating community.

The MTQ’s suspension of the demolition plan follows the release by the mayor’s office, on April 7, of the number of incidents that have occurred in the Deschênes Rapids in a letter addressed to André Fortin. The letter was written in response to security concerns brought up by the MNA in the ongoing debate about the demolition of the ruins of the hydroelectric dam in the rapids.

The letter details the interventions that have been necessary in the rapids since 2008. They include six cases of dead or missing persons, four accounts of people being treated for nervous shock, two injuries, and the mention of ten more interventions executed by the Ottawa Fire Services in which the injuries or number of deceased were unknown to the mayor’s office. Also included is confirmation that none of the interventions occurred on the ruins themselves.

While the letter was seen as a step forward by the Pontiac MNA, he says he “still has questions regarding the exact location of the incidents in the rapids.”

In this letter, the mayor also takes the opportunity to highlight the importance of the ruins in the cultural landscape of not only Aylmer, but of Gatineau as a whole. He also explains the current efforts by the city, notably through the work of councillor Richard M. Bégin, to get the ruins declared a heritage site, reminding the Quebec government that “the absence of heritage citation is not an excuse for an owner to neglect his property or to suggest its demolition.”

André Fortin has stated to the Bulletin that he is “very happy” with the city’s push to conserve the ruins as a heritage site, a position that echoes that of citizen groups in the Aylmer sector, who have been demanding the preservation of the ruins since the beginning of this debate.