Homes were left underwater after severe flash flooding and hail hit the town of Cache Creek Saturday evening.
The Kamloops Search and Rescue team was called out just after 5 p.m. with reports of homes being washed away and vehicles in the water.
“It was pretty devastating, there’s lots of minor damage but certainly there was areas of very, very heavy damage as well,” search manager Alan Hobler told CTV News. “There was one road that was almost entirely washed out and the small creek that came up very high in water level and basically ran right through town.”
Hobler said after RCMP confirmed everyone was accounted for, Search and Rescue helicopters surveyed the river and a search and rescue dog looked through debris to ensure no one was stuck.
Witness Thalia Ochoa said the flood created a surreal environment in her community.
"The whole road is completely washed out and parts of the mountain behind it were coming down. Some cars and some of the trailers were actually floating down what used to be the street, so it was pretty intense,” she said. “It was like a scene from the movie.”
Up to 35 homes are now considered unlivable, and the declaration of a state of emergency is expected.
One Twitter user’s rental home was buried under water at about 6:30 p.m where water was running down streets like a river.
Highway One and Highway 97 were shut down for several hours according to Drive BC, leaving some homeowners unable to access their residences. Highway One later reopened at around 7:45 p.m.
Emergency crews set up roadblocks and drivers were told use extreme caution in the area.
Much of the area is still under thunderstorm watch for Sunday.
With files from CTV Kelowna's Kent Molgat
