City of Ottawa boosting funding for flooding grant program in wake of Canada Day storms: mayor

Garbage piled high outside the homes of residents affected by flooding in Ottawa. July 3, 2026. (Tyler Fleming/CTV News Ottawa)

Ottawa Mayor Mark Sutcliffe says there are plans in the works to help compensate residents affected by basement flooding following the record-breaking rainfall on Canada Day, but people should go through their insurance first.

Speaking on Newstalk 580 CFRA’s The Morning Rush with Bill Carroll on Monday, Sutcliffe said he spoke with Premier Doug Ford on Friday and is hopeful Ontario will allow Ottawa residents to apply for Disaster Recovery Assistance for Ontarians (DRAO) funding.

“This is something that people apply for after they have gone through their insurance process to cover additional costs that they have beyond what’s covered by their insurance,” he said. “So, it’s not something that immediately takes effect, and all of a sudden everybody’s getting a cheque from the provincial government.”

Several local MPPs and councillors signed an open letter to the provincial government, asking for the same.

An update on the city’s recovery efforts is scheduled for 2 p.m. Monday.

Under DRAO, residents and small businesses can apply for financial assistance to recover after a natural disaster. The program is only accessible if activated by the government for a specific region when a “sudden, unexpected natural disaster causes costly and widespread damage.”

Claimants can receive up to $250,000, the Ontario government’s website says.

Sutcliffe said the City of Ottawa also has a program—called the Compassionate Grant program—that offers $1,000 to qualified property owners and tenants affected by flooding due to a sewer surcharge event.

He says, however, that the city is anticipating many more claimants this year than normal.

“I’m going to make sure that we are expanding the funds available in that program so that anybody who’s eligible for funding under that is able to get the money,” he said.

“In a normal year, we don’t have three or four thousand flooded basements, so the amount of money that’s in that program is not enough to cover this particular event, but we’re going to make sure that we add funds to that program, so that everybody who’s eligible receives the funding.”

Since the July 1 storm dumped 118 millimetres of rain on Ottawa officially, with some areas reporting even large amounts, Sutcliffe says the city has taken steps to ease the recovery, such as relaxing garbage collection rules in affected areas, adding extra collection days, and cutting fees at the Trail Road landfill for flood-related waste.

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