It may not be warm enough for boating season, but the Windsor Port Authority and City of Windsor are not taking any chances.
The port authority has implemented a 30-metre ban for boaters along the Detroit River shoreline.
The ban was first put into place in July 2019 to try and reduce the damage to shoreline properties and infrastructure from the boat's waves.
Windsor Harbour Master Peter Berry, says the water levels are rising and there is little that can be done to mitigate it.
Berry says there has been very little, if any, evaporation.
"We do see the water is rising, it is not a climatic change, it is the fact that the lakes themselves are rising and the seaway is opening as well," he says.
Berry estimates water levels are 11 to 14 inches higher now, compared to this time last year.
"There are many a things occurring on the Great Lakes, so we looked at the timing, we are starting a month earlier than last year, which is indicative of the water levels being higher than they were at this time last year," he says.
Berry says officials predicted water levels were going to be up this year.
"We knew that we were going to have some difficulties coming early into the season," he says. "The beginning of April, to have these difficulties is problematic because the weather is still cold."
The ban will be reviewed on a month-to-month basis.
The City of Windsor is helping to protect homes from flooding along Riverside Drive East from George Avenue to the Tecumseh border. Residents who receive a flyer are asked to call 3-1-1 to set a time to meet at the sandbag station on Little River Road. The sandbag station will have a City staff member on hand, but the bags and filling of the bags are the responsibility of residents.
The Essex Region Conservation Authority has issued a flood watch for all shoreline areas of Windsor-Essex and Pelee Island. The water is in effect until further notice and ERCA expects water levels will peak in June or July 2020.