Health-care patients, long-term care residents moved out of B.C. flood zones

VANCOUVER -

Dozens of patients and long-term care residents have been moved out of areas impacted by significant flooding in B.C., the province's health minister says.

In a COVID-19 update Tuesday, Health Minister Adrian Dix spoke about the impacts recent flooding has had on people in health-care facilities in the affected communities. Dix said about 200 people had to be moved from facilities in Merritt and Princeton, both of which have faced mass evacuation orders.

"My deepest gratitude to emergency crews, health-care workers, health authority employees, B.C. Emergency Health Services and ministry staff for everything they've done over the past couple of days to keep people safe," Dix said.

"This includes significant efforts to safely move patients and residents of long-term care and assisted living out of flood areas."

Public Safety Minister Mike Farnworth said the efforts to move patients and long-term care residents during this "extreme weather event" have been "significant."

Both he and Dix pointed out these communities were already impacted by wildfires earlier this year and that many of the people being moved are "extremely vulnerable."

"In the case of people in Merritt in particular, a group of residents of long-term care who have already had to move this summer in the course of the evacuations around the wildfires," he said.

"I just want to say that we're thinking of and supporting those residents and our extraordinary health-care teams are helping them."

The ministers didn't clarify where people were transferred to, though Farnworth said, in general, people from Merritt have either gone to Kamloops or Kelowna. Evacuation orders remain in place for both Merritt and Princeton.

An updated list of evacuation orders is available on Emergency Info BC's website.