Grand Forks, B.C. state of local emergency rescinded
Residents in Grand Forks, B.C. are feeling optimistic Sunday, as the state of local emergency has been rescinded thanks to peaking flood waters.
34 families were told they could return home Sunday, while 40 evacuation orders remain in effect.
“There is nothing worse for a mayor to tell someone, you’ve got to get out of your house,” said Grand Forks mayor Everett Baker.
Despite parts of the community still visibly flooded, primarily in the Johnson Flats neighbourhood, officials say the damage is not nearly as bad as 2018 when 95 homes were destroyed due to flooding.
“We’ve been able to create a flood mitigation in the downtown core, and it was devastating in 2018, and today it’s dry,” said Baker. “Today was a good test and I’m pleased to say it was successful.”
"After 2018, Grand Forks went out and sought out grant funding to build large-scale mitigative measures, and fortunately those measures have come in to play this time and protected residents,” said Mark Stephens, the manager of emergency programs with the Regional District of Kootenay Boundary.
Kevin Lennox lives in Grand Forks, and knows the effects of flooding all too well.
“Down in North Ruckle, in 2018 that was the big flood and we didn’t lose the house to the flood, we lost the house to expropriation actually,” he said. “We’re hoping it’s not going to be as bad as 2018, there’s been a lot of diking the city has done since then.”
Water levels have continued to crest in communities fighting similar flood waters. According to the mayor of Oliver, a town in the South Okanagan, the river is also starting drop.
"I have not seen this creek flood like this, it comes up with runoff but not to the point that it did yesterday. It just goes to show that rain and warm temperatures are the perfect scenario for flooding,” said Martin Johansen, the mayor of Oliver.
Hundreds in the interior and southeast parts of B.C. are already under evacuation order, with many more on alert.
According to the B.C. River Forecast Centre, affected areas will remain vulnerable throughout next week as the snow from up north continues to melt.
"We're still early for the big rivers, like the Fraser river, the Thompson river, those tend to peak a little bit later in the season so we're anticipating to watch those closely over the coming weeks,” said Dave Campbell, the head of B.C. River Forecast Centre.
Early next week, a provincial analysis of the snow melt is expected. Experts say it will provide more clarity on the future of flooding this spring.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
![](https://www.ctvnews.ca/polopoly_fs/1.7010097.1724329123!/httpImage/image.jpg_gen/derivatives/landscape_800/image.jpg)
Rail work stoppage shuts down some Ontario, Quebec, B.C. commuter rail lines
Bewildered commuters were turned away from shuttered rail lines on Thursday as an unprecedented railway lockout upset travel plans for more than 30,000 daily riders in some of Canada's largest cities.
Former U.S. ambassador to Canada gives 'tsunami warning' about Trump
A former United States ambassador to Canada is sounding the alarm that a second Donald Trump presidency would cause chaos for Canadians as he urged Americans abroad that their votes could prove crucial in the presidential election.
The first person in Canada to legally access 'magic mushroom' therapy has died at age 56
A Saskatoon man who became a trailblazer for psilocybin-assisted therapy, using a psychedelic drug commonly known as magic mushrooms, has died at age 56.
Body of British tech magnate Mike Lynch is among those recovered from yacht wreckage, officials say
The Italian coast guard said Thursday the body of British tech magnate Mike Lynch is among those recovered off the coast of Sicily from the wreckage of a superyacht whose builders had called it unsinkable.
Fluoride at twice the recommended limit is linked to lower IQ in kids, U.S. report says
A U.S. government report expected to stir debate concluded that fluoride in drinking water at twice the recommended limit is linked with lower IQ in children.
Video shows swimmer bringing man to safety near Vancouver's Stanley Park
An avid swimmer insists he did not rescue a man he spotted floating in Vancouver’s English Bay – he just happened to be in the right place at the right time, and offered a helping hand.
DEVELOPING 9,300 employees locked out: Latest updates on shutdown of Canada's 2 largest railways
In a first for Canada, freight traffic on its two largest railways has simultaneously ground to a halt, threatening to upend supply chains trying to move forward from pandemic-related disruptions and a port strike last year.
Child's phone catches fire in Cambridge, Ont. movie theatre
A mother was left shaken after her 11-year-old's cellphone suddenly caught fire while he was in a movie theatre.
CUPE calls for Fred Hahn's resignation following social media post
The Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE) passed a motion requesting national vice-president Fred Hahn's resignation following a recent social media post he shared.