IMAGE images
Photos Bob Whitelaw
Every year, usually in mid-November, City of Ottawa employees place a boom (seen above) across the Rideau River to help control ice and reduce flooding in the spring. The ice control boom installed at Strathcona Rapids slows the surface flow, promotes ice cover and limits the volume of slush, anchored ice and ice dams in the river, thereby increasing the efficiency of ice breaking and clearing operations in February and March.At other times of the year, the boom is tied to the shore along the pathway behind Range Road.
