Canadian Forces members begin helping out in flooded B.C. communities
VANCOUVER — Dozens of members of the Canadian Armed Forces have begun to arrive in communities ravaged by flooding in British Columbia, giving relief to emergency workers, volunteers and residents who have worked tirelessly to protect homes and businesses from further damage.
Forty-four military personnel arrived Friday at the Okanagan Similkameen’s emergency operations centre in Penticton, said John Davies, field operations incident commander for the emergency operations centre.
“We took them up to Twin Lakes and they are adding some bags and fixing up the gabions in that area to try and hold back the increasing water level within Twin Lakes,” Davies said.
Frances Maika, spokeswoman for the Regional District of Kootenay Boundary, said the arrival of about 12 members of the military to help with sandbagging was a huge morale booster for the overwhelmed residents of Grand Forks.