Recent Flooding Events

Posted on behalf of Sam Schooner, Director, Area E

“We are working toward being proactive rather than reactive. We had a great meeting with Minister Farnworth [Public Safety] and our M.L.A. Jennifer Rice [Parliamentary Secretary for Emergency Preparedness] during the wildfires and we put the issue of flood mitigation on the table.

Flood mitigation is tough for us, it´s mostly a provincial responsibility, but when they don´t do their part, it´s our community members paying the price with their homes and security. Orphaned dikes continue to be a big problem and we´d like a regulatory environment that would allow more small scale mitigation without having to take on all the financial and legal liabilities required of diking authorities.

Our Region just can´t afford it. It´s been heavy on my mind and we´ve talked about emergency preparedness at each of our Board meetings since. We have consultants working on updating our emergency plans for the Region and we look forward to reviewing those updated plans in the New Year.

We have also approved some big ticket funding proposals to move forward dealing specifically with flood risk assessment and we are hopeful all the advocacy we have been doing with the Province to make our Region a priority will pay off. We are coming up to our planning for the next year which is an opportunity for us to clarify how much work we expect staff to put into helping our community prepare, which is always a balancing act with all the other needs we have to keep our services going. I´m looking forward to chairing our next Emergency Executive Committee Meeting to be held at Snootli Creek Hatchery later in November now that the restructuring of the Committee is almost complete.”

Please be advised that in response to the recent flooding event, the Central Coast Regional District (CCRD) has opened the Emergency Operations Centre (EOC), during regular CCRD hours, to level one for monitoring and to coordinate with other agencies. Provincial government officials are preparing to do site-visits and assessments.

If your property has been impacted by the recent flooding events and you would like the CCRD to document that and share the information with Emergency Management BC (EMBC), please contact Courtney Kirk, CCRD Administration at cao@ccrd-bc.ca

Central Coast Regional District Contact Information
Website: http://www.ccrd-bc.ca
Facebook: Central Coast Regional District
Office Number: 250-799-5291
Afterhours Emergency line: 250-982-0062

Provincial Emergency Reporting Numbers
EMBC - Emergency Coordination Centre: 1-800-663-3456
EMBC - Emergency Social Services: 1-800-585-9559

EMBC advises that residents are responsible for having a plan, as well as the tools and equipment necessary to protect their homes and properties. In potential life threatening circumstances, the Central Coast Regional District may issue an Evacuation Alert or an Evacuation Order to residents living in a flood hazard area.

Please click on the links below for information and resources on: