School closures: Some B.C. districts cancel in-person classes due to latest floods
With the latest rounds of atmospheric rivers hitting southern B.C., some local school districts decided to cancel class on Monday.
The second in a trio of intense rainfalls subsided in many areas Sunday, however a third storm is forecast to arrive on Tuesday and Wednesday. Officials have warned that it could be the worst one yet.
In a letter to parents Sunday, Fraser-Cascade School District, which covers Hope, Agassiz, Boston Bar and Kent, said schools would be closed Monday "out of an abundance of caution."
This comes after the District of Hope declared a local state of emergency over the latest flooding.
"The severe weather conditions, flooded areas and road closures make travelling for staff and students too difficult to open schools tomorrow," the letter from the school district said.
"With extreme weather conditions, please note that there may be a possibility for further closures this week."
Most schools in flood-stricken Abbotsford have returned to in-person learning, after some cancelled class for several days recently. For the week of Nov. 29 to Dec. 3, the only schools still doing virtual learning are Robert Bateman Secondary and WJ Mouat Secondary.
School buses that have routes through evacuation zones won't be operating, however. Buses on other routes may be significantly delayed.
"The city's (emergency operations centre) team has advised us that the impacts of the flooding in our community continues to be a concern, particularly as we look ahead to the rain forecasted for this week," a notice on the Abbotsford School District's site says.
"We will continue to communicate with you should changes arise in our school operations."
All schools in Mission and Chilliwack, which both had recent closures in recent weeks because of flooding, are open Monday.
With files from The Canadian Press
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Widow looking for answers after Quebec man dies in Texas Ironman competition
The widow of a Quebec man who died competing in an Ironman competition is looking for answers.
Amid concerns over 'collateral damage' Trudeau, Freeland defend capital gains tax change
Facing pushback from physicians and businesspeople over the coming increase to the capital gains inclusion rate, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and his deputy Chrystia Freeland are standing by their plan to target Canada's highest earners.
Tom Mulcair: Park littered with trash after 'pilot project' is perfect symbol of Trudeau governance
Former NDP leader Tom Mulcair says that what's happening now in a trash-littered federal park in Quebec is a perfect metaphor for how the Trudeau government runs things.
Train derailed in Sarnia after colliding with a truck
Police are investigating after a transport truck collided with a train in Sarnia.
World seeing near breakdown of international law amid wars in Gaza and Ukraine, Amnesty says
The world is seeing a near breakdown of international law amid flagrant rule-breaking in Gaza and Ukraine, multiplying armed conflicts, the rise of authoritarianism and huge rights violations in Sudan, Ethiopia and Myanmar, Amnesty International warned Wednesday as it published its annual report.
Fewer medical students going into family medicine contributing to doctor shortage
As some family doctors are retiring and others are moving away from family medicine, there are fewer medical students to take their place.
'It's discriminatory': Individuals refused entry to Ontario legislature for wearing keffiyeh
Individuals being barred from entering Ontario’s legislature while wearing a keffiyeh say the garment is part of their cultural identity— and the only ones making it political are the politicians banning it.
Bodies found by U.S. authorities searching for missing B.C. kayakers
United States authorities who have been searching for a pair of missing kayakers from British Columbia since the weekend have recovered two bodies in the nearby San Juan Islands of Washington state.
'My stomach dropped': Winnipeg man speaks out after being criminally harassed following single online date
A Winnipeg man said a single date gone wrong led to years of criminal harassment, false arrests, stress and depression.