Residents of a flood-ravaged community on British Columbia's central coast received a splash of good news Tuesday, as emergency officials rescinded their evacuation orders.
Stephen Waugh, co-ordinator for the Central Coast Regional District's emergency operations centre, said evacuation orders for the Bella Coola Valley were lifted after heavy rain that had plagued the region since Friday came to a stop.
As many as 60 Bella Coola homes had been evacuated because of the extreme rainfall, Waugh said.
Though residents have been told they're free to return home, some won't be able to because the flooding has made their homes uninhabitable, he said.
Waugh said Bella Coola is no stranger to emergencies, as approximately 65 homes were evacuated last year due to wildfires.
But the sudden swelling of an area river, which rose more than four metres in 36 hours, caught everyone off-guard, he said.
"There's no question that there was a panic, this surprised everybody," Waugh said in an interview.
"After that, I think there was a bit of shock and certainly a bit of sorrow. We've lost animals, we've certainly lost some property. Some nice properties have been absolutely devastated.
"At this point, there's a lot of resolve to get us up and running again."
The flooding caused major damage to highways and other infrastructure in the Bella Coola Valley. Crews worked feverishly Tuesday on road repairs in several areas.
No injuries were reported as a result of the flooding.
The Bella Coola airport, which had been closed because of a breached dike, was also re-opened.
BC Hydro urged area residents to conserve as much electricity as possible as it relied on diesel generators.
As Bella Coola residents were told they could return home to survey their residences, provincial emergency officials urged those who have been affected by the rains to get their claims for compensation in quickly.
Johanna Morrow, manager of recovery and funding for the Disaster Financial Assistance Program, said the length of time it takes to process an application can be as little as two weeks, but it's sometimes longer.
"It can take longer if there are a number of applications and a number of locations," she said. "The message to individuals is to get an application in as soon as possible and as soon as it is safe, we will get evaluators in."
The disaster assistance program covers 80 per cent of repairs that exceed $1,000, up to a maximum of $300,000. Homeowners, rental tenants, farms, small businesses and charities are eligible.
Premier Gordon Campbell said Monday the funding covers parts of northern Vancouver Island including Port Hardy, Port Alice and Zeballos, as well as the province's central coast, such as Bella Coola, Kingcome Inlet and the corridor between Bella Coola and Anahim Lake.
Heavy rains on Vancouver Island caused several mudslides and washouts, said Chris Duffy of B.C.'s Provincial Emergency Program.
On the island's north end, Winter Harbour has been cut off, but officials are considering whether an alternative land route might be established using a logging road.
Duffy said Hydro infrastructure in Winter Harbour has been damaged by the rains, but the community is getting by with temporary generators on loan from the Ministry of Forests.
The ministry is also supplying bottled water.
In Port Hardy, a state of emergency was cancelled over the weekend and district officials have said they've got their situation under control.
Waugh said district officials believe the Bella Coola floods occurred because of a loss of trees due to the pine beetle.
He said the loss of vegetation has diminished the soil's capacity to hold water.
Spencer Siwallace, chief councillor with the Nuxalx Nation in Bella Coola, said supplies were running low at area stores and gas stations Tuesday as a result of the flooding.
He said serious consideration needs to be given to elevating area highways to prevent similar washouts in the future.
