HWY 1, HWY 99 reopen; unsettled weather forecasted all week

Provincial authorities say the weather event that flooded the Lower Mainland Sunday throughout Monday morning has passed, but unsettled weather is expected for the region throughout the week.

Connie Chapman, executive director of water management at the Government of B.C. said in an update Monday afternoon that peak flows are now occurring in rivers and streams.

She said the Sumas and Chilliwack rivers are both continuing to be monitored and flood warnings remain. Authorities say the Nooksack River is no longer of concern.

“For the remainder of the week we can expect an ongoing unsettled weather, but cooler temperatures means that more snowfall will happen at the higher elevations versus rain,” Chapman said.

According to Environment Canada, rainfall is expected throughout the week for the Abbotsford area up to Metro Vancouver with the potential for flurries by the end of the week as temperatures drop closer to 0 C.

Approximately 24,000 BC Hydro customers on the Lower Mainland and Sunshine Coast are without power as of Monday evening due to high winds.

BC Hydro says some of the hardest hit areas are Squamish, Duncan and Hope.

A number of trees have also fallen on power lines, including in Burnaby, New West and Abbotsford.

Evacuation orders and alerts

“This remains a dynamic and evolving situation and the risks are real,” Kelly Greene, B.C.’s emergency management minister said Monday around 1 p.m.

She says approximately 100 properties are still under evacuation order, with another 1,200 under evacuation alert due to continued rising water levels.

On Monday afternoon, evacuation orders were partially rescinded for properties in Sumas Prairie West. Thirty-six properties in this area remain under evacuation orders.

Around 12:30 p.m., the Fraser Valley Regional District issued evacuation orders for about nine properties on Sheldon and Osborne roads due to the risk of high flows on the Chilliwack River.

Minister Greene advised all residents to have a grab-and-go bag ready in case the situation changes.

Road closures

Environment Canada has issued four highway alerts as of Monday morning.

An orange rainfall warning is in place for the Coquihalla Highway from Hope to Merritt and Highway 3 from Hope to Princeton via the Allison Pass.

Special weather statements are also in effect for the Coquihalla Highway from Merritt to Kamloops and the Okanagan Connector from Merritt to Kelowna.

Highway 3 from Hope to East Gate remains closed with no current estimated time of reopening.

Janelle Staite, deputy director of the South Coast Region, says 21 discreet sites have been located and two have been cleaned out so far.

“Five sites in particular have very large cross cuts across the major highway so we’re actually having to dig out a culvert that has failed and do some replacement work,” she said, noting a timeline can be expected in the coming days.

Highway 1 and Highway 99, both of which were closed as precautionary measures, have since been re-opened, but Staite says drivers should be prepared to face new closures at any time.

There is also a travel advisory in place for Highway 1 due to high winds.

Minister Greene stated there have been reports of a rockslide on Highway 20 and more information on this incident will come.

According to Canadian Border Services, the Sumas border along Highway 11 reopened Monday afternoon.

Reopened (City of Abbotsford)

On Monday afternoon, the City of Abbotsford announced a series of roads that have reopened. The following roads are now opened:

• 2nd Avenue
• B Street
• Bateman Road between Wright Street and Highway 11 
• Boundary Road between 2nd Avenue and Whatcom Road – Limited Local Access
• Bowman Road South of Wells Line Road
• Clayburn Road between Highway 11 and Wright Street (watch for pooling water on roadway)
• Cole Road from Hwy 1 to Wells Line Road
• Hwy 1 on ramps (No3, Atkinson, Cole Road, Whatcom, Sumas Eastbound)
• Lamson South of Wells Line Road
• McDermott Road South of Wells Line Road
• North Parallel from Old Yale Road to Whatcom
• Gladwin between King and Huntingdon
• Old Yale between Whatcom and Delair (watch for pooling water on roadway)
• South Parallel Westbound from No 3 Road to Cole
• Whatcom South of Vye to Boundary
• Whatcom Road between Vye Road and Nelles Road

Calls for federal government support

Late last week Abbotsford Mayor Ross Siemens expressed dismay over the federal government’s lack of response.

“To see that we are disappointed and frustrated is an understatement,” said Siemens.

“Enough is enough. We need action, and we need action now. We don’t need empty promises from the federal government that they have our back. In fact, the federal government has not even reached out to me during this event. So I’m profoundly disappointed.”

B.C. Minister of Agriculture Lana Popham said the federal government must be at the table when funding is requested to find solutions for flooding now and into the future.

“I support [Mayor Siemens’] call for further action from Ottawa,” she said.

Businesses react

Paul Gerwal and Sukhi Dhami, co-owners of the Fraser Lynn Golf Course say the flooding came with little to no warning.

“We’re safe, we’re not safe, we’re safe, we’re not safe. To the point where we’re at now,” Grewal told 1130 NewsRadio saying he was disappointed with the communication from the city.

“Thursday morning everyone said ‘you dodged a bullet, you guys are going to be okay, this is it,” Dhami added. “Then I get a call that says hey this water is coming you’ve got two hours, and it was just panic after that.”

The owners said they were able to save most of their equipment but the damage is overwhelming and cleanup may have to wait if more rain is to come.

Minister Popham says there have been no calls to the emergency AgriService line over the past 24 hours, but she says farmers are still expressing worry.

The ministry is currently working with a hog farm that is cut off and is in need of food. If a feed truck can not get through, the minister said food will be flown in via helicopter.

She said six poultry farms have also been flooded and are in contact with the ministry about next steps.

– With files from Charles Brockman, Emma Crawford and 1130 NewsRadio staff