Abbotsford lifts evacuation order for part of Sumas Prairie as floodwaters recede
The City of Abbotsford is lifting an evacuation order for some residents of the Sumas Prairie that was ravaged by floodwaters after a record rainfall event last month.
In an update on the city's "return home plan" Monday, Abbotsford Mayor Henry Braun said an evacuation order for the prairie's Central region is being lifted, effective immediately.
The City of Abbotsford says the Central area has just over 200 properties.
"For the Central area, we've completed all rapid damage assessments of structures, including houses, barns, garages and even gazebos," Braun said.
He adds that to ensure the safety of the public and first responders, those travelling in and out of the Central section must access the area by Cole Road.
The Sumas Prairie is divided into four regions: Central, South, Lake Bottom and North.
The evacuation order for the North section was rescinded on Friday. Evacuation orders for both the South and Lake Bottom areas remain in effect.
The City of Abbotsford also announced it is extending its local state of emergency for another week.
But Braun remains optimistic after seeing floodwaters recede in some areas.
"Over the weekend we saw a 70 inch drop in the water level in the Sumas Prairie's Lake Bottom, which is nearly six feet or 1.85 metres, including 20 inches in just the last 24 hours," said Braun. "Despite this progress, it will still be some time before that area becomes accessible again."
Braun said many fields in the Sumas Prairie are still under about four to five feet of water. He urges everyone to follow evacuation orders and stay out of areas that are not open yet.
"No one knows what may be just underneath the floodwaters. Even once we are able to clear the water from this area, there will be lots of work that needs to be done before we can begin to rebuild."
Braun said full recovery is still a while away and the city is nowhere near being ready for another major storm.
"The flooding event of three weeks ago was a perfect storm with multiple conditions coming together to create the one in 100 year event that consumed the Sumas Prairie. I'm not sure that we will have another 100 years before we face a weather event that is similar or worse. And we are not prepared for that today."
Braun said more work will need to be done to ensure the devastating weather event isn't repeated.
"This work requires the support of the federal and provincial governments to ensure we can upgrade our dikes to current standards in order to protect our community and the economic viability of our region."
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Bodies found by U.S. authorities searching for missing B.C. kayakers
United States authorities who have been searching for a pair of missing kayakers from British Columbia since the weekend have recovered two bodies in the nearby San Juan Islands of Washington state.
Amid concerns over 'collateral damage' Trudeau, Freeland defend capital gains tax change
Facing pushback from physicians and businesspeople over the coming increase to the capital gains inclusion rate, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and his deputy Chrystia Freeland are standing by their plan to target Canada's highest earners.
'It's discriminatory': Individuals refused entry to Ontario legislature for wearing keffiyeh
Individuals being barred from entering Ontario’s legislature while wearing a keffiyeh say the garment is part of their cultural identity— and the only ones making it political are the politicians banning it.
BREAKING Mounties will not be charged in shooting death of B.C. Indigenous man
Three Mounties in British Columbia will not face charges in the killing of a 38-year-old Indigenous man on Vancouver Island in 2021.
Canada's favourite sport to watch is hockey, survey shows
The 2024 Stanley Cup playoffs have already delivered a fever level of fan excitement in Canada.
Douglas DC-4 plane with 2 people on board crashes into river outside Fairbanks, Alaska
A Douglas C-54 Skymaster airplane crashed into the Tanana River near Fairbanks on Tuesday, Alaska State Troopers said.
Tom Mulcair: Park littered with trash after 'pilot project' is perfect symbol of Trudeau governance
Former NDP leader Tom Mulcair says that what's happening now in a trash-littered federal park in Quebec is a perfect metaphor for how the Trudeau government runs things.
'It's just so hard to let it go': Umar Zameer still haunted by death of Toronto police officer
“It's just so hard to let it go. I mean, everyone is telling me, ‘you have to move on,’ but I know someone is not here [anymore]. So I don't know how I will move on." That’s what Umar Zameer, the man recently acquitted in the death of a Toronto police officer, told CTV News Toronto in a sit-down interview on Tuesday.
NASA hears from Voyager 1, the most distant spacecraft from Earth, after months of quiet
NASA has finally heard back from Voyager 1 again in a way that makes sense. The most distant spacecraft from Earth hadn't sent home any understandable data since last November.