B.C. minister visits flood-damaged town, promises support to repair damage
CTV
British Columbia's public safety minister got a first-hand look Friday of the destruction caused by torrential rainstorms that forced rivers over their banks and ripped away roads and bridges.
British Columbia's public safety minister got a first-hand look Friday of the destruction caused by torrential rainstorms that forced rivers over their banks and ripped away roads and bridges.
Mike Farnworth visited Princeton and said he saw “incredible devastation” to homes and infrastructure in the southern Interior town, about 280 kilometres east of Vancouver.
“It's heartbreaking. You talk to people and it's emotional just to look at it,” he said in a telephone interview from a restaurant in the town. “But what you also hear is people are so thankful and grateful for the way the community's come together.”
Mayor Spencer Coyne showed Farnworth the damage to his community. Farnworth said there is a lot of work to do in the rebuilding effort, including to a dike, a gas line and homes.
Farnworth said the government is doing all it can to help affected communities recover.
The B.C. government is still assessing the damage done to its highways and agriculture industry after a series of “atmospheric rivers” pummelled the southern part of the province.
Agriculture Minister Lana Popham said her federal counterpart will visit areas affected by floods next week to speak with farmers.
