Search continues for 3 missing after deadly mudslide south of Lillooet
After finding the body of a woman from the Lower Mainland on Tuesday, search and rescue crews are still looking for three more people believed to be missing after Monday’s massive mudslide on Highway 99 south of Lillooet.
“The work is very complex. Geotechnical analysis of the area is being conducted, and it has to be deemed safe in order for emergency specialists to gain access to the search site,” said RCMP Asst. Commissioner Eric Stubbs.
Road crews are trying to clear the highway for re-opening, while search and rescue teams look for the missing.
“At this point out contractor continues to work closely with the RCMP, recognizing the sensitivity of the situation,” said Janelle Staite with the Ministry of Transportation.
Maple Ridge business owner Kathie Rennie, who was driving home from her cabin with her husband and nine-year-old son on Monday morning, narrowly escaped the torrent of mud and debris.
“I just turned around and it was like a tsunami of trees and stones and mud, and it just came down so quickly,” said Rennie. Her husband grabbed his chainsaw to try to free vehicles as Rennie, who has first aid training, tended to the wounded.
“I was asking the ones I had taken out, was there anyone else with you? Did you see other cars? How many cars should we be looking for, how many people should we be looking for,” she said.
One of the men she helped look for immediately after the slide has still not been located.
“He wasn’t in the car,” said Rennie. “His wife jumped in, he shoved his mom in the car, and then the landslide hit.”
She had to convince the man’s wife and mother to leave the scene without him when rescue crews arrived.
“They were so distraught,” said Rennie. “I don’t know if I could leave either, but we had to leave. We had to get out of there, it was so unsafe. It was just the worst human experience is all I can basically say.”
She knows her family could have easily been swallowed up by the massive slide.
“It’s emotional,” Rennie said through tears. “But it just wasn’t our time. It wasn’t our day, it wasn’t how we were going to go. So thankful, for sure.”
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
'Still so much love between us,' Sophie Gregoire Trudeau says of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau
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.
What to know about avian influenza in dairy cows and the risk to humans
Why is H5N1, or bird flu, a concern, how does it spread, and is there a vaccine? Here are the answers to some frequently asked questions about avian influenza.
'I was scared': Ontario man's car repossessed after missing two repair loan payments
An Ontario man who took out a loan to pay for auto repairs said his car was repossessed after he missed two payments.
opinion The special relationship between King Charles and the Princess of Wales
Royal commentator Afua Hagan writes that when King Charles recently admitted Catherine to the Order of the Companions of Honour, it not only made history, but it reinforced the strong bond between the King and his beloved daughter-in-law.
Pro-plastic lobbyist presence at UN talks is 'troubling,' say advocates
Environmentalist groups are sounding the alarm about a steep increase in the number of pro-plastic lobbyists at the UN pollution talks taking place this week.
'Too young to have breast cancer': Rates among young Canadian women rising
Breast cancer rates are rising in Canada among women in their 20s, 30s and 40s, according to research by the University of Ottawa (uOttawa).
Charlie Woods, son of Tiger, shoots 81 in U.S. Open qualifier
Charlie Woods failed to advance in a U.S. Open local qualifying event Thursday, shooting a 9-over 81 at Legacy Golf & Tennis Club.
$70M Lotto Max winners kept prize a secret from family for 2 months
During a special winner celebration near their hometown, Doug and Enid shared the story of how they discovered they were holding a Lotto Max ticket worth $70 million and how they kept this huge secret for so long.
Trump's lawyers grill ex-tabloid publisher as 1st week of hush money trial testimony nears a close
After prosecutors' lead witness painted a tawdry portrait of “catch-and-kill” tabloid schemes, defence lawyers in Donald Trump's criminal trial on Friday sought to dig into an account of the former publisher of the National Enquirer and his efforts to protect Trump from negative stories during the 2016 election.