Catastrophic economic impact of B.C. floods
The B.C. floods have crippled the flow of cargo in and out of Vancouver ports, further damaging already pandemic-strained supply issues. That presents a huge cost to the local and national economy.
"This supply chain delivers fuel, food, medicine and essential goods to Canadians and supports an agriculture sector that is facing catastrophic impact," said Oman Alghabra, minister of Transport Canada.
Sections of some major connector roads are washed away, bridges are destroyed, Highway 1 east is flooded and sections of the main rail corridors from Vancouver to points east are closed after some lines washed out. Vancouver is cut-off from the rest of the country.
In a statement, the Vancouver Fraser Port Authority said: "The Vancouver gateway is experiencing significantly disrupted rail and truck movement due to widespread flooding throughout the Metro Vancouver and Fraser Valley regions. Despite these impacts, marine terminals at the Port of Vancouver are still operating."
However, the cargo and supply lines could clog up with nowhere for the goods to go and no route in for exports.
Disrupted terminal operations are expected. Around noon on Thursday, there were 33 cargo vessels anchored in Burrard Inlet all the way up to Deep Cove. On Friday morning, the Vancouver Fraser Port Authority said it had 42 vessels at anchor.
Neither of the country's two rail lines have a timeline when repairs will be complete.
"CN crews continue to make progress on critical repair work following the mud slides and washouts that impacted CN’s rail network in British Columbia. Traffic through southern B.C., northbound and eastbound traffic from Vancouver, as well as inbound traffic to Vancouver from east/north of Kamloops are still affected by the situation," writes Mathieu Gaudreault, CN Railway senior advisor of medial relations.
Canadian Pacific Railway issued a statement saying, "CP's operations between Spences Bridge and Falls Creek, B.C., remain suspended following heavy rains that have resulted in multiple track outages."
"I'm going to use the word catastrophe," said Trevor Heaver, an emeritus professor with the University of B.C.'s Sauder School of Business. "We really don't have any precedent by which to judge the magnitude of the effect."
The supply chain disruption is the perfect storm coming in the wake of pandemic supply issues in the middle of the holiday shopping season.
Vancouver ports export about four times as much goods as imports, but either way the impact on the economy is significant.
"The economic impact of the flooding overall is going to have many ramifications and also for a long time, and it's also going to take a considerable time for our supply chains, import and export, to be able to get back to normal," added Heaver.
He expects it could be well into next year before we begin to see anything resembling normal.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
American millionaire Jonathan Lehrer denied bail after being charged with killing Canadian couple
American millionaire Jonathan Lehrer, one of two men charged in the killings of a Canadian couple in Dominica, has been denied bail.
LeBlanc says he plans to run in next election, under Trudeau's leadership
Cabinet minister Dominic LeBlanc says he plans to run in the next election as a candidate under Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's leadership, amid questions about his rumoured interest in succeeding his longtime friend for the top job.
Grandparent scam suspects had ties to Italian organized crime, Ontario police allege
A group of suspects that allegedly defrauded seniors across Ontario and other parts of Canada using a so-called emergency grandparent scam appear to have ties to 'Italian traditional organized crime,' according to an investigator involved in the OPP-led probe.
Sports columnist apologizes for 'oafish' comments directed at Caitlin Clark. The controversy isn’t over
A male columnist has apologized for a cringeworthy moment during former University of Iowa superstar and college basketball’s highest scorer Caitlin Clark’s first news conference as an Indiana Fever player.
Trend Line Anger, pessimism towards federal government reach six-year high: Nanos survey
Most Canadians in March reported feeling angry or pessimistic towards the federal government than at any point in the last six years, according to a survey by Nanos Research.
BREAKING B.C.'s short-term rental regulations include $10K daily penalties for Airbnb, other platforms
Short-term rental platforms that violate B.C.'s pending regulations can face administrative penalties of up to $10,000 per day, officials announced Thursday.
Taylor Swift's new album allegedly 'leaked' on social media and it's causing a frenzy
A Google Drive link allegedly containing 17 tracks that are purportedly from Swift's eagerly awaited "The Tortured Poets Department" album has been making the rounds on the internet in the past day and people are equal parts mad, sad and happy about it.
Motion to allow keffiyehs at Ontario legislature fails
A motion to reverse a ban on the keffiyeh within Queen’s Park failed to receive unanimous consent Thursday just moments after Ontario Premier Doug Ford reiterated his view that prohibiting the garment in the House is divisive.
'Shopaholic' author Sophie Kinsella reveals brain cancer diagnosis
Sophie Kinsella, the best-selling author behind the 'Shopaholic' book series, has revealed that she is receiving treatment for brain cancer.