"Saskatoon Downtown July 2022" by daryl_mitchell is licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0.

The Saskatoon Fire Department is warning people not to go in or near the South Saskatchewan River because of high flow rates.

Last night’s incident, in which a boat’s outboard engine failed causing it to drift down the river, is what prompted the Fire Department to release the warning.

So far, flow rates have peaked at more then 700 cubic meters per second after the release from Gardiner Dam.

Battalion Chief Dwayne Jobson explained the department won’t deploy divers when the river flows exceed 450 cubic metres per second for the diver’s safety.

“Most people are staying off the river and being very cautions along the shores and not going in with there dogs and trying to cool off, so most people are being very respectful with the risk the river poses right now.”

Jobson noted that as of now flow rates are roughly four times faster then what Saskatoon is used to, and that the rates should be down to around 250 cubic meters per second within the next five to six days.