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Region still has concerns JENNIFER SMITH Morning Star Staff
Shuswap reels from floods LACHLAN LABERE Black Press
Sicamous residents are being encouraged to conserve water or risk further compromising the municipal water system following extreme flooding that has shaken the houseboat community. Interior Health Medical Health Officer Dr. Trevor Corneil said Monday that while the water is still not safe to drink, the mandatory Do Not Use order was downgraded to a Do Not Consume order, adding that this applies in Sicamous as well as Swansea Point. “The unfortunate matter with the flood water debris is that it landed near the (water) intake for the Sicamous area, and that included both gas and oil, some treated sewage, some raw sewage, as well as chemicals from one of the houseboat operations…,” said Corneil Monday. Corneil said public works has to keep water flow going for emergency support (fire), and to keep they city’s water system from collapsing. The Provincial Emergency Program had a helicopter fly over Sicamous and Hummingbird creeks Monday to assess their current state and if there is an impending danger of another washout. It was unofficially announced that things looked positive, but Sicamous Mayor Darrell Trouton explained Tuesday that while Hummingbird looks good, PEP officials are not convinced that
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Sicamous Creek is safe yet. Regarding the 300 to 350 people who are said to have been evacuated, Trouton explains this includes not only residents of 2 Mile, but also Swansea Point and other residents outside of Sicamous, as well as Waterway Houseboat customers who lost their vehicles in the debris flow and haven’t been able to get home. “So what do we do with these people? They went to the evacuation centre because their vehicles were gone. The highways are closed to their homes… so what do we do with them? We have to put them up. They have nothing,” said Trouton. Monday evening, RCMP went around Sicamous Sands putting residents on evacuation alert. The Eagle River was flowing around properties on the far end of Sicamous Sands near the nature park, while the lake was seeping over sandbags in front of properties on the foreshore. Trouton said the district can handle more rain which was in the early-week forecast. “Lives are safe, people are safe, we’ve had a day here to start to work on plans for infrastructure, temporary, when the evacuation order gets lifted… and that’s what we’re working on right now,” said Trouton. “We’ll be back in there and have the people in place to assess all the damages and get the residents back in there as soon as possible.”
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A volunteer surveys the devastation and rushing water of Sicamous Creek in the 2 Mile district of Sicamous after extreme flooding wreaked havoc on the Shuswap community.
While the North Okanagan is doing relatively well compared to the devastation in the Shuswap, flood concerns are still far from being eased. There are flood warnings still in effect for Shuswap Lake and Shuswap River upstream and downstream of Mabel Lake (including around Enderby and Lumby). A flood warning means that river levels have exceeded bankfull or will exceed bankfull imminently, and that flooding of areas adjacent to the rivers affected will result. “As of (Tuesday) morning, the river in Enderby was still slightly on the increase (after rising nine centimetres on the weekend),” said Gord Molendyk, information officer for the North Okanagan Emergency Operations Centre. “There were reports of the river breaching in the Enderby-Grindrod area. “It’s right from Sugar Lake right through, the whole works is up.” Flooding has closed Highway 97A eight kilometres south of Sicamous, with singlelane traffic for emergency vehicles only. Three kilometres south of Sicamous at the 2 Mile bridge it is also closed because of damage flooding caused to the road Saturday. Flooding/water damage to a few homes in the Kingfisher area resulted over the weekend after trees came down and diverted water. The forest service road on the back side of Mabel Lake was also compromised, with one or two homes being cut off. “But nothing, nothing compared to what is happening in the Shuswap area, which is just on the outside of our regional district,” said Molendyk, adding we are very fortunate that no lives have been lost. “We have been fortunate in this region.” Some boaters are also putting a damper on homeowner’s efforts to protect their properties. Therefore conservation and police officers will be out on the water on the weekend ensuring boaters keep their wake down. “We want boat owners and operators to have some consideration,” said Molendyk, adding it is an offence to create a wake that could damage property. “It’s highly critical now.” Crews are continuing to monitor the water levels in the area and will advise if there are any changes in conditions that will affect homes and properties. Check www.vernonmorningstar.com for ongoing updates.
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