B.C. storm: 98% of cows, 97% of laying chickens survived recent floods, agriculture minister says
The vast majority of cows and egg-laying chickens in B.C.'s flood-stricken Sumas Prairie have survived, the province's agriculture minister said Friday as the region continues its recovery from record-breaking weather events.
Lana Popham gave the encouraging update Friday morning, saying she had the opportunity recently to speak to industry members who were impacted by recent floods in Abbotsford.
"As the waters recede we can get a better picture of mortalities and how it may affect production," she said. "Our hearts continue to be with the folks that are struggling with the very difficult situations that are happening right now."
On Thursday, Popham delivered the devastating news that more than 640,000 animals died in the floods.
But on Friday, Popham said some stories of survival are starting to emerge.
Popham said that according to the chair of the B.C. Chicken Marketing Board, 61 poultry premises were included in the evacuation zone. But in those farms, 97 per cent of the laying chickens survived.
"I'd like to recognize the collective efforts of all the poultry industry members in pulling together and helping one another as we've seen in other industries," she said.
Popham also said that 98 per cent of cows from the Sumas Prairie survived the flooding.
"This is really due to the farmers working together and communities making sure that they had those farmers' backs," she said in Friday's update.
HELP FROM THE COMMUNITY
The agriculture minister also gave an update on dairy farmers, whose story she shared last week. Popham said two brothers, Carl and Rudy Meyer, spent days feeding dozens of dairy cows that were submerged in water.
"The waters came up so fast (on Nov. 15), they couldn't get their livestock out and so 180 dairy cows were up to their necks in water," Popham said last week, calling the brothers "local heroes."
"Those brothers went in and fed those cows hay for two days while those cows were submerged in that water."
On Friday, she said the brothers told her that once the waters receded, members of the Abbotsford Rugby Association showed up to help clean the barns.
"They cleaned hundreds of stalls and then even assisted the family removing stuff from their soggy basement," she said. "And after they did that, they moved on to help other farmers. I've also heard that the hockey team did the same thing."
On Thursday, Popham said floodwaters reached depths of 2.4 metres in places. A series of intense storms brought days of relentless rain over southern B.C., leading to mudslides and flooding across the area. Abbotsford was among the areas hit hardest by the floods.
With files from CTV News Vancouver's Kendra Mangione
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
'One of the single most terrifying things ever': Ontario couple among passengers on sinking tour boat in Dominican Republic
A Toronto couple are speaking out about their 'extremely dangerous' experience on board a sinking tour boat in the Dominican Republic last week.
What Canadians think of the latest Liberal budget
A new poll suggests the Liberals have not won over voters with their latest budget, though there is broad support for their plan to build millions of homes.
opinion Why you should protect your investments by naming a trusted contact person
Appointing a trusted person to help with financial obligations can give you peace of mind. In his personal finance column for CTVNews.ca, Christopher Liew outlines the key benefits of naming a confidant to take over your financial responsibilities, if the need ever arises.
Teacher shortages see some Ontario high school students awarded perfect grades on midterm exams
Students at a high school in York Region have been awarded perfect marks on their midterm exams in three subjects – not because of their academic performances however, but because they had no teacher.
'My stomach dropped': Winnipeg man speaks out after being criminally harassed following single online date
A Winnipeg man said a single date gone wrong led to years of criminal harassment, false arrests, stress and depression.
Photographer alleges he was forced to watch Megan Thee Stallion have sex and was unfairly fired
A photographer who worked for Megan Thee Stallion said in a lawsuit filed Tuesday that he was forced to watch her have sex, was unfairly fired soon after and was abused as her employee.
Ottawa injects another $36M into vaccine injury compensation fund
The federal government has added $36.4 million to a program designed to support people who have been seriously injured or killed by vaccines since the end of 2020.
An Ontario senior thought he called Geek Squad for help with his printer. Instead, he got scammed out of $25,000
An Ontario senior’s attempt to get technical help online led him into a spoofing scam where he lost $25,000. Now, he’s sharing his story to warn others.
Her fiance has been in prison for 49 years. She's trying to free him before it's too late
Christine Roess is a retired consultant. Ezra Bozeman has spent the last 49 years in prison, serving a life sentence for a murder he says he didn’t commit. Against the odds, the two fell in love.