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British Columbia torrential rain forces evacuation
of 700
Heavy rains and flooding have forced the evacuation of 700 people
in and around the towns of Squamish and Pemberton, British Columbia,
north of Vancouver. After four days of driving rain, the towns declared
a state of emergency, with weather forecasts calling for more rain
today.
British Columbia Hydro & Power Authority, the provincially owned
electricity provider, opened a floodgate at a reservoir Friday after
days of rain, causing a river in Squamish to overflow and flood
the town. "We're nervously awaiting the next storm. We hope that
today the river level will drop a little," said Squamish emergency
worker Chris Morris. "Even in a tropical forest, this isn't normal.
We received more rain in three days than in the entire month of
October.".
Road closed and bridge collapsed
The rain has washed out sections of Highway 99, which links Vancouver
to Squamish, Pemberton and Intrawest Corp.'s ski resort at Whistler.
This is the only road to Whistler ski resort, which along with Vancouver
will host the 2010 Winter Olympics. The Royal Canadian Mounted Police
are looking for missing people after a vehicle plunged into a river
when a bridge collapsed, the report said.
Environment Canada reported that the area has had some 312 millimeters
of rain fell between Thursday and Saturday in the last three days,
a rainstorm the agency says occurs once in a century, flooding basements
and covering cars.
 Snowmen
and gondolas
This thanksgiving at Whistler Blackcomb, however, everyone had a
something extra to be thankful for - 33cm of new snow. The snow
came on the last day of fall operations for Whistler Blackcomb.
Many sightseers rode the Whistler Village Gondola to the top to
build snowmen, throw snowballs and play in the snow.
While the new snow is welcome, it created difficulties for Whistler
Blackcomb employees trying to access the slopes. Instead of being
able to drive to work, staff were forced to walk through the drifts
(poor things - get over it and get on with it! - Ed). Snowmobiles
were hastily dug out, and a few lucky staff were able to strap on
their skis to do some cleanup work at the top of the Peak chair.
More on the way
With a cool and wet October and November expected, Whistler Blackcomb
is hoping for snowy lead in to the start of the winter season. Opening
day on Blackcomb Mountain is 22 November and Whistler opens 5 days
later for the American thanksgiving weekend on 27 November.
[Source: Skipress.com,
CBC.com, ABC online]
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