B.C. couple who survived deadly Cleveland Dam accident sues regional district

Two Vancouverites who were nearly swept away by a torrent of water when a maintenance worker opened the spill gate at the Cleveland Dam two years ago are suing the regional district.

When Mateusz Wiacek and his wife Chihiro Nakamura decided to have a picnic on the rocks in the Capilano River on Oct. 1, 2020, the water level was low. But their lawyer Paul Formby said that quickly changed after the accidental release.

“They could hear this rushing sound, and it was Mateusz who turned around first, and what he could see behind him was this huge wall of water – the reports were approximately four meters high – rushing towards them in the rear from the dam,” said Formby.

They swam for shore, but Nakamura didn’t make it. She was forced to cling to a log in the middle of the raging river while her husband scrambled up the bank to call 911.

“They both thought they would die at one point, and especially Chihiro who was stuck on that log and had to be left alone while Mateusz went for help,” said Formby.

Ultimately first responders rescued Nakamura, but North Vancouver father Ryan Nickerson and his son Hugh drowned in the Capilano River. Since that day, Formby said his clients have been traumatized.

“Both of them, whenever they go around water and hear rushing, it all comes back. There are sleep problems, nightmares,” said Formby. “Because their symptoms, their post-traumatic stress symptoms haven’t subsided since, they decided to commence a legal action for regress and restitution.”

The couple has filed civil lawsuits against the Metro Vancouver Regional District and the Greater Vancouver Water District, seeking general damages for pain and suffering, loss of enjoyment of life, and loss of earning capacity and opportunity.

In a statement, Metro Vancouver commissioner Jerry Dobrovolny said: “Over the past two years, we have had no direct contact from the couple other than receiving their claims this past Friday, and they have made no prior attempts to work with us or notify us about their experience.”

After a comprehensive post-incident review, Metro Vancouver installed seven alarms at locations along the Capilano River to alert users in case of an accidental release at the Cleveland Dam.

Formby is glad the alarms are now in place, and he’s hoping the civil lawsuit leads to even more changes, adding “I would like to see standards set in respect to the safety conditions, so this doesn’t happen again.”