Weeks before total insured losses from B.C. flooding are tallied: insurance bureau

The Insurance Bureau of Canada says it will be several weeks before the insured losses are added up for a severe weather and flooding event that deluged parts of southern B.C. 

A series of atmospheric river weather events last week led to overflows from the Nooksack River in Washington state that crossed the border into Abbotsford, forcing out hundreds, while further east the storms flooded homes and washed away roads. 

Aaron Sutherland, vice-president for the Insurance Bureau of Canada's Pacific region, says the storms come just four years after the devastating flooding of 2021 in the same area. 

He says recent event serves a "painful reminder of the need to build our resilience and better protect communities from the new weather reality we face," adding that insurers are working with Fraser Valley residents and farmers to process claims to get them back on their feet.

The City of Abbotsford lifted all of its evacuation alerts on Thursday, saying in a statement that it has moved from flood response to recovery as the waters of the Sumas and Nooksack rivers recede.

Environment Canada also lifted all weather alerts for the region, including special weather statements issued Thursday for strong winds over Metro Vancouver, Fraser Valley, and Howe Sound.

However, the weather office has issued a snowfall warning for the Coquihalla Highway between Hope and Merritt, saying a "series of low pressure systems" will bring up to 30 centimetres Friday, with an additional 15 centimetres possible on Saturday.

Picture Courtesy: THE CANADIAN PRESS/Ethan Cairns