B.C. expands areas eligible for financial help after October atmospheric river

Multiple homes are seen surrounded by debris left by flooding from torrential rain from an atmospheric river weather system in Deep Cove in North Vancouver, on Oct. 22, 2024. (Ethan Cairns / The Canadian Press)

The British Columbia government is expanding financial assistance for those impacted by intense rainfall and flooding that hammered British Columbia's coast in October.

The emergency management ministry says businesses and residents in Surrey, Port Moody and the village of Anmore are now eligible to apply to the Disaster Financial Assistance program.

The ministry says the new areas expand upon Indigenous communities, electoral areas and municipalities already deemed eligible last month.

The program is available to homeowners, renters, business owners, farmers, corporation-owned properties and charitable organizations to cover uninsurable disaster-related losses.

The ministry says all applications related to the October floods must be submitted to the ministry by March 13, 2025.

An atmospheric river system dumped hundreds of millimetres of rain on parts of the province Oct. 18 to 20, causing flash floods and sewer backups and making rivers overflow.

It prompted a local state of emergency in North Vancouver and led to more than $110 million in insured damage claims according to the Insurance Bureau of Canada.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Dec. 13, 2024.