An intense rainstorm blowing in from the Pacific Ocean hit the west coast of Vancouver Island on Jan. 27. It dumped up to 75mm of rain overnight, causing several remote island roads to flood.
At about 4 p.m. yesterday, an RCMP 4x4 SUV came upon a flooded section of road about two km outside of Zeballos. RCMP Constable Todd Pebernat estimates the road was under about 2.5 feet of water at the time. The officers attempted to cross the flooded section of road but stalled out. They were forced to call a tow truck to rescue their vehicle.
“That area is swampy and has a river there so it’s prone to flooding; there are sticks along the roadside so people can gauge the depth of water when it floods,” said Pebernat.
There is a secondary road into Zeballos that follows a higher route into Ehattesaht. That road is safe and is open to the public.
Further south, the road leading into the Ditidaht village of Malachan (Nitinaht Lake) was also flooded. A concerned mother reported that her son, one of 14 people who had left the village to attend a field trip, was stranded at the Ditidaht Fish Hatchery, just outside of the village due to a flooded access road.
Ditidaht school teacher Dave Mason said the bus was returning from Victoria when they came upon the flooded section of the road about five km outside the village.
“We couldn’t’ see the other side of the road. It was like a river,” he said. One of the students waded into the water to check the depth; he went knee-deep and turned back.
The teacher went to the Ditidaht Salmon Hatchery building and called for help. The Ditidaht Public Works truck rides high and was able to cross the flooded road. Everyone was taken safely into the village but the school bus remains on the road outside the village.
The rain has stopped in Malachan and the tide is low, but the road remains flooded.
The depth of water was checked by locals and deemed safe and the stranded residents were able to get home the same evening.
In Port Renfrew, Pacheedaht resident Helen Dunn-Jones shared her images of the flooded section of highway that connects Port Renfrew to Lake Cowichan. Fairy Lake broke its banks, completely covering the section of road along its shoreline.
Larger vehicles were able to cross the flooded section of highway.
Tseshaht Chief Councillor Hugh Braker took to Facebook Jan. 28 to warn that the Somass River was rising very fast. The community suffered flooding last year, and keeps a close eye on the river systems. He said the gates at the Tseshaht Park which is on the banks of the Somass, would remain locked until the emergency was over.
He warned parents to keep children away from the creeks, the Paper Mill Dam park and the River.
"Sproat Lake is reported to be near the edge of Sproat Lake Drive." He was to be on a conference call with Emergency Management B.C. this morning and would update after the call.
"KEEP YOUR KIDS AWAY FROM THE RIVER AND CREEKS," he wrote.
