Hemlock Valley/Agassiz – Some 500 or so people are stranded at Sasquatch Mountain Resort after an overnight slide caused by the rains and wind.
The only route in and out has been blocked.
Mayor Sylvia Pranger told FVN and chillTV on Saturday that about 40 homes are being evacuated along Rockwell Drive, north of Harrison Hot Springs.
The District of Kent has issued a State of Emergency:
Saturday afternoon, the Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure issued a statement on the situation:
The Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure advises that Hemlock Valley Road is closed in both directions due a mudslide and washout that occurred last night after heavy rainfall (120mm to 140mm). There is no detour at this time.
This is the only road available to travel to and from the Hemlock Valley community and Sasquatch Mountain Resort in Agassiz. Approximately one kilometre of road has been washed out.
Residents of the Hemlock Valley community are advised to stay at home. People who are currently at the Sasquatch Mountain Resort are advised to stay at the resort until crews can clear the debris from the road for safe travel.
Ministry staff and the maintenance contractor have completed an assessment of the washout on Hemlock Valley Road at Morris Valley Road.
A plan is in place to restore one lane and implement single-lane alternating traffic. However, due to the significant extent of the washout, it will require approximately five to six days to complete.
Ministry staff are in regular communication with Sasquatch Mountain Resort and the community association, the local government, the regional district and Emergency Management BC.
For the most up-to-date highway travel information, check @DriveBC on Twitter, or visit: DriveBC.ca
From their website (which can be found here)-
Last (Friday) night, there was a landslide on Hemlock Valley road on the resort side just past the avalanche area leaving it impassable to vehicles in both directions. (There was a race scheduled for Friday and Saturday which obviously was cancelled).
As much as we would like to open the mountain for the many families and individuals currently on the mountain and those wanting to come up, we are left with no choice but to suspend all activities on hill until the road is back open.
Please stay tuned for regular updates; we will be posting as soon as we get updates from the road crews!
