Coquihalla 'lifeline' between B.C. and rest of Canada to reopen in January
For the first time since the catastrophic, record-setting mid-November floods that destroyed homes and highways, both the federal and provincial transportation ministers got an on-the-ground view of the extensive damage to B.C.’s Coquihalla Highway on Friday.
“I can’t imagine what it’s like to be here at four in the morning,” said provincial minister Rob Fleming. “But that’s what the shift work is like right now.”
“Hearing it about it in theory, in pictures, is one thing,” said Fleming’s federal counterpart, Omar Alghabra. “Seeing it first hand on the ground is quite revealing.”
Along some 130 kilometres of Highway 5 that saw damage in 20 spots, journalists were given a glimpse of some of the most severe impacts, including at a place known as the Bottletop Bridge.
“The river eroded (the foundation), undermined it, and both spans here collapsed,” said Kevin Weicker with the Highway 5 response team.
Weicker pointed out the temporary fix to one span that had been completed.
Officials say they have the section of highway between Hope and Merritt slated for reopening – to commercial traffic only – in early January, if the weather cooperates.
“It won’t be like it was,” said Paula Cousins with the Ministry of Transportation, who led the media tour.
Cousins said there will be two 20-to-30-kilometre sections of highway where there will be only one lane traveling in each direction and at slower speeds.
Cousins estimated between 100 and 200 workers and 100 pieces of heavy equipment are working onsite 24 hours a day.
Some crews are working in the river itself to stop erosion and re-route the water after it channeled new paths during the flood.
“This is just one of those awesome examples of people and companies coming together – and we got what we needed,” Cousins said.
Fleming called the pace of the work “amazing.”
“It’s a lifeline between British Columbia and the rest of the country,” Fleming said.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
More than 115 cases of eye damage reported in Ontario after solar eclipse
More than 115 people who viewed the solar eclipse in Ontario earlier this month experienced eye damage after the event, according to eye doctors in the province.
Toxic testing standoff: Family leaves house over air quality
A Sherwood Park family says their new house is uninhabitable. The McNaughton's say they were forced to leave the house after living there for only a week because contaminants inside made it difficult to breathe.
Decoy bear used to catch man who illegally killed a grizzly, B.C. conservation officers say
A man has been handed a lengthy hunting ban and fined thousands of dollars for illegally killing a grizzly bear, B.C. conservation officers say.
B.C. seeks ban on public drug use, dialing back decriminalization
The B.C. NDP has asked the federal government to recriminalize public drug use, marking a major shift in the province's approach to addressing the deadly overdose crisis.
OPP responds to apparent video of officer supporting anti-Trudeau government protestors
The Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) says it's investigating an interaction between a uniformed officer and anti-Trudeau government protestors after a video circulated on social media.
An emergency slide falls off a Delta Air Lines plane, forcing pilots to return to JFK in New York
An emergency slide fell off a Delta Air Lines jetliner shortly after takeoff Friday from New York, and pilots who felt a vibration in the plane circled back to land safely at JFK Airport.
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau on navigating post-political life, co-parenting and freedom
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau says there is 'still so much love' between her and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, as they navigate their post-separation relationship co-parenting their three children.
Last letters of pioneering climber who died on Everest reveal dark side of mountaineering
George Mallory is renowned for being one of the first British mountaineers to attempt to scale the dizzying heights of Mount Everest during the 1920s. Nearly a century later, newly digitized letters shed light on Mallory’s hopes and fears about ascending Everest.
Loud boom in Hamilton caused by propane tank, police say
A loud explosion was heard across Hamilton on Friday after a propane tank was accidentally destroyed and detonated at a local scrap metal yard, police say.