City of Abbotsford lifts all remaining evacuation orders and existing evacuation alerts

ABBOTSFORD — In an encouraging sign Wednesday afternoon, the City of Abbotsford says it has downgraded all remaining evacuation orders for 11 properties to evacuation alerts and and canceled evacuation alerts for 474 properties in Sumas Prairie.

According to a statement from the municipality, floodwaters have receded to the point that the BC River Forecast Centre has downgraded the Sumas River from Flood Warning to High Stream Flow Advisory, now that all residents in Sumas Prairie can safely return to their properties.

The city says rapid damage assessments were conducted on homes within the evacuation area observed to be impacted by the floodwaters prior to lifting the orders. Altogether, 341 homes were assessed as green, meaning re-entry of the building was permitted, and 28 were assessed as yellow, meaning access to the structure is restricted, contingent on varying conditions.

Assessments were done on the outer structure of homes only, not the inside or other buildings on the property, such as sheds or barns. Upon returning to their property, residents may want to have their home and other structures further assessed with support of their insurer. Resources and guidance for residents are available on the Return Home information page.

Since all evacuation orders have been rescinded, the reception centre at the Abbotsford Recreation Centre has closed as of 4 p.m. today and will be operating remotely. Residents who need assistance with existing Emergency Support Services (ESS) can contact the ESS Director at 604-607-3408.

There are still a few road closures in place and drivers are reminded to follow traffic control signage. Complete road closure information can be found at www.abbotsford.ca/roadclosures.

The city says staff in the Emergency Operations Centre will continue to monitor river levels, dikes, roads and weather conditions over the coming days and the City will continue to provide updates to residents as new information becomes available at www.abbotsford.ca and on City social media channels.