One person was confirmed dead while others were reported missing following a landslide on a British Columbia highway, officials said.
The BC RCMP said in a statement on Tuesday, a woman’s body was recovered from the scene of the skid on Highway 99 between Pemberton and Lillooet.
The woman’s identity was not released, but the RCMP said she resides in the Lower Mainland of the province.
At least two people have been reported missing and other occupied vehicles may have been caught in the slide, which is located about 9 kilometers north of Pemberton, according to the RCMP.
The highway remains closed between Lil’wat Place and Seton Lake Road. Initial reports suggest that around 50 vehicles were stranded, some of which may have been carried away.
‘BEST WEATHERS IN A CENTURY’
Meanwhile, hundreds of people had to be rescued by helicopter across BC after being stranded after two days of rain resulted in rivers of mud and rocks flowing across roads.
The province’s Minister of Transport and Infrastructure Rob Fleming called the “unprecedented” weather event the “worst weather storm in a century” at a news conference on Tuesday.
He said while the damage was significant at some point, teams were preparing for work to get BC’s supply chain back up and running.
“This is our number one priority, getting our routes back up and running, and we will provide whatever resources are needed to make that happen,” said Fleming. .
WOES SUPPLY CHAIN
The severing of railway lines and the closure of transport links is just the latest blow to the province’s supply chains, which could affect the rest of the country.
“Even before the storm, supply chains globally were already under strain before COVID-19,” Johnny Rungtusanatham, the Canadian Research Chair in Supply Management at York University’s Schulich School of Business, told CTVNews. .ca on Tuesday. “COVID-19 has only exposed the fragility of global supply chains.”
According to Rungtusanatham, BC officials will have to assess the safety of road and rail routes and how to prioritize goods arriving through the Port of Vancouver awaiting shipment to the rest of Canada.
“I hope that the delay we’ve been talking about even before the storm can actually get a little worse,” he said. “If the delay translates into someone else essentially paying for the goods that don’t move, you know, then this cost can be passed on to the consumer.”
CONFIRMATION ASSESSMENT ORDER is too difficult
Dozens of residents of Merritt, BC, defied evacuation orders from the city over fears of looting, even as floodwaters flooded the streets with contaminated water and caused a bridge to collapse.
“More than half of the town is gone, it seems like an open door to come get what you want,” Darsell Poittris, who spent the night watching looters, told CTV News.
“Every [accommodation] we called sold out, so where are you going? I would rather stay at home with these problems and in the car with my animals and my kids. “
The BC RCMP told CTV News that authorities have not received any reports of looting.
Officials are urging residents to leave Merritt due to safety concerns after a local sewage treatment plant failed, polluting floodwaters and making tap water unsafe to drink, and a bridge south of the city collapsed on Monday night.
One family apparently had to be rescued by helicopter Tuesday from the roof of their home. North Shore Rescue, a volunteer search and rescue team, said in an Instagram post they had pulled a family of three and their dog from a house surrounded by water.
Pending COVID-19 TRAVEL RULES
Some border restrictions brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic will be beckoned to help Canadians stranded by floods in BC get home.
Canada’s Border Services Agency confirmed to CTV News that those unable to travel to the rest of the country via highways that are currently closed without a scheduled reopening date will be able to drop out. go through a number of steps typically required to re-enter Canada after crossing the U.S. Border.
Specifically, they are exempt from pre-arrival COVID-19 testing and subsequent testing in Canada, as well as quarantine requirements.
‘AVOID ALL TRIPS TO ABBOTSFORD’
BC’s transport department is advising residents to “avoid traveling to Abbotsford and surrounding areas” due to the city’s state of emergency and widespread flooding causing damage to Valley roads. Fraser valley.
“Ambulance team [are] deal with widespread flooding, and any additional traffic will hinder their efforts,” the ministry said in a statement. DriveBC Twitter account. “Highways are closed until further notice.”
Abbotsford declared a local emergency on Monday due to “several local emergencies” because of the flooding. The city’s mayor said the warning would remain in place for seven days, unless it was announced in advance.
Schools in Abbotsford were also closed on Tuesday.
In addition, some areas of the strait and the Sumas grasslands were ordered to evacuate on Monday and Tuesday.
VANCOUVER BRIDGE REOPENS
The city of Vancouver has reopened the Burrard Street Bridge after it was closed Monday night due to concerns about a large barge running aground nearby.
The barge appeared to have escaped its moorings during a strong wind storm that brought torrential rains in southern BC from Saturday night to Monday.
It was seen floating near the city’s breakwater on Monday afternoon before running aground at Sunset Beach. Officials closed the bridge over fears it could come loose again.
An attempt was made to tow the barge Tuesday afternoon, but it was unsuccessful. A city engineer told CTV News he estimated it would take six tugs to pull the barge out of the rock.
CONTINUE ROAD
While some roads have reopened, many remained closed due to flooding and landslides on Tuesday as rescue efforts continued to reach people trapped in their vehicles. Several road warnings remain affected, including those for sections of Freeways 1, 3, 5, 7, 8, 11, 12, 14 and 99, due to flooding and landslides.
POWER IS RECOVERED
Hydropower crews have made great progress in restoring power to most of the homes left behind by the storm. About 2,230 homes were still experiencing power outages in the Lower Mainland and on Vancouver Island as of 5:30 p.m. PST, and 2,800 customers in Interior.
Featuring files from CTV News’s Kendra Mangione, Christy Somos, Penny Daflos, Alyse Kotyk, Alissa Thibault and Andrew Weichel, and The Canadian Press
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