Two Dead, One Missing After Boating Incident on Flooded Squamish River

Two people are dead and another is missing after a boating incident in the Squamish Valley north of Vancouver on Thursday, Global News reported, citing the Squamish RCMP. Police have asked the public to stay off the water because of dangerous flow rates and debris in the river systems.

The search continued Friday. The incident came after several days of heavy rain that swelled rivers and flooded roads across British Columbia's Sea-to-Sky region.

What is known about the incident

CBC News reported that RCMP Insp. Robert Dykstra said “several individuals” were involved and that there were fatalities, without giving a number. He said some people made it to safety, and no further details were released while the investigation continues.

Reports differ on timing: Global News said police were called at about 1:52 p.m., while CBC News said B.C. Emergency Health Services responded at 2:48 p.m. PT. Three ambulances and an air ambulance attended, and no patients were taken to hospital, according to CBC News.

Search and rescue crews, including Squamish Search and Rescue and North Shore Rescue members, were involved. Cpl. Ashley MacKay of the Squamish RCMP said river and weather conditions made search and recovery extremely difficult and unsafe and that the situation is changing quickly.

What it means for people in the area

The main practical effect is danger on the water. Police said flow rates and debris make the rivers unsafe, and they are asking everyone to stay off them for now.

Flooding is also disrupting daily life. According to CBC News, Environment and Climate Change Canada recorded 135 millimetres of rain at Squamish Airport between Tuesday morning and Thursday at 1:30 p.m. The entire village of Pemberton and the Paradise Valley community were under shelter-in-place orders, more than 50 properties in Líl̓wat Nation and a handful on Airport Road in Pemberton were ordered to evacuate, and Highway 99 was closed east of Pemberton.

Global News reported that Pemberton's evacuation order for Airport Road covers the airport, wastewater treatment facility, wildland fire base and a public golf course, and that Lil̓wat Nation expanded its evacuation order and alert along the Lillooet River corridor to Lillooet Lake.

A rescue during the same storm

Early Thursday, a woman was rescued after her vehicle became stuck in floodwater on Squamish Valley Road, according to CBC News. She was in waist-high water for more than an hour when a person nearby heard her yelling and helped her. Squamish SAR manager Mike Teske said she was lucky and that she still had cell service. He advised anyone trapped in floodwater to stay with the vehicle and go to its roof.

What happens next

The River Forecast Centre had projected water levels to peak Thursday afternoon but warned that another storm system could bring new challenges this weekend, CBC News reported. Global News said the flood warning for the Sea-to-Sky corridor and Pemberton Valley was downgraded Friday morning. Police have not named the people involved.

Around Prague, based on reporting by CBC News, Global News

Cover photo: McKay Savage / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 2.0, cropped

Share: Telegram WhatsApp