‘Nothing is worth your life’: Abbotsford mayor pleads with people to evacuate Sumas Prairie

Abbotsford’s mayor is urging with those who haven’t evacuated the Sumas Prairie to leave, saying the danger due to flooding is “escalating quickly”

The renewed plea for people to leave the area came after approximately 1,100 properties were initially ordered to evacuate Tuesday morning.

“You need to leave immediately,” Harry Braun said at an emergency nighttime news conference  — the third the city held in a 12-hour period.

“You need to leave to get out of the area.”

Abbotsford Mayor Henry Braun telling EVERYONE who is on evacuation order in the Sumas Prairies to get out now. Says pumps are not working properly in Sumas Lake, and if the water overflows from the Fraser into the flooding in the prairie it could be “catastrophic” @CityNewsVAN pic.twitter.com/Wr2ZMhb2Ef

— Robyn Crawford (@robyncrawford_) November 17, 2021

The potential failure of the Barrowtown Pump Station has made the situation even more perilous for any residents who remain. Braun says of the roughly 200 properties that have not yet been evacuated, there are 300 people that have not yet left.

“The engineering team is doing everything they can to protect the Barrowtown Pump Station at this time. However, if there is an overflow into the pump station this situation will become critical very quickly,” Braun said.

“We are taking this incredibly seriously and are ensuring all measures are in place. The situation is changing by the minute and that is why we are taking all steps necessary at this time. Residents need to place priority on life safety and not ignore the current evacuation orders that are in place and have been since this morning.”

Abbotsford Fire and Rescue, along with crews from Chilliwack, are working to build a wall of sandbags “to buy time for that water to accumulate and then be pumped out,” according to Chief Darren Lee who said they are also looking at having additional pumps flown in.

Open Gallery 12 items

An earlier statement from the city explained what will happen if the critical piece of infrastructure fails.

“Water within the Sumas Prairie will not be able to be pumped out and water from the Fraser River will begin entering the already flooded Sumas Prairie area,” it said. “Additional water flow down from Sumas Mountain is also now creating further flooding in the area. This event is anticipated to be catastrophic.”

Braun said even with all the pumps working at full capacity, water continues to rise.

“The water is at a level I have never seen.”

“If those pumps go down — and that’s an if — there’s nowhere for that water to go so people will be incredibly surprised how quickly the situation will develop,” the mayor added.

Braun said if the pump does fail, the city is prepared to send an emergency alert via text message.

Abby PD – “this is critical” – they’ve asked for help from province and feds. Engineers are assessing the situation minute by minute. “We’re getting to people as fast as we can. If we lose the pump we will see the water rise quicker” @CityNewsVAN

— Tarnjit Kaur Parmar (@Tarnjitkparmar) November 17, 2021

As for the rescue efforts, helicopters have to be grounded overnight. Lee says they are looking at getting additional choppers to assist during daylight hours, noting how hazardous water rescues at night can be.

Chief Mike Serr with the Abbotsford Police Department said crews are getting help from search and rescue crews from across the region, and echoed Braun’s pleas to anyone who has not yet left their property.

“We still have many people that we need to evacuate from that area. We’ve reached out to provincial, federal resources to help support us,” he explained.

“This order has been out for a while, but now we’re really stressing to you how critical it is that we get you out of this area. Evacuations are currently underway, they will go through the night and they will continue into the morning. And we’re continuing to bring in more and more resources so we can get everyone from their homes into a safe place.”

!!! EMERGENCY UPDATE: The Cit The City of Abbotsford is issuing an immediate & urgent notice to all residents that did not yet evacuate Sumas Prairie to evacuate immediately. Conditions within tSumas Prairie within the last hour have escalated & pose a significant risk to life. pic.twitter.com/vQBDlStqma

— City of Abbotsford (@City_Abbotsford) November 17, 2021

Braun ended by appealing to farmers who are worried about leaving their livestock and livelihoods behind.

“I get the farmer’s heart, I do get that,” he said.

“They want to stay behind and protect what they have spent their whole life building. I get that — but nothing is worth your life. I’m speaking personally now. I just implore anyone who is listening to this to please heed the evacuation order and leave tonight. Tomorrow morning may be too late. I can’t predict the future. But we for sure have to plan for the worst — and right now that’s what we’re doing.”

IMPORTANT INFO: Frontline personnel are seeing an increase in citizens attempting to access the evacuated areas within the Sumas Prairie. Some are attempting to gain access for travel and to take pictures. This is impacting first responders rescue efforts. Please stay clear

— Abbotsford Police Department (@AbbyPoliceDept) November 16, 2021

Earlier in the day, the Abbotsford Police Department took to social media to urge people not to enter the affected area, saying crews had to rescue four “youths” who were kayaking there, and that others were “attempting to gain access for travel and to take pictures.”

B.C. Public Safety Minister says federal help requested 

British Columbia’s public safety minister says he has been in “continual contact” with Abbotsford’s mayor.

“The Province is supporting the City of Abbotsford with any resources it needs,” Mike Farnworth writes in a statement.

“I have also been in contact with Bill Blair, federal Minister of Emergency Preparedness, to request federal assistance on this incident and the flooding situation in general. This includes Canadian Armed Forces ground and air support.”

Farnworth adds that the city has opted not to issue a “broadcast intrusive” alert that would go out through the province’s Alert Ready system.

“The City of Abbotsford has indicated that it does not want to issue an alert at this time. Abbotsford officials are in the process of directly contacting all those affected by this notice.”

Farnworth ended by repeating the mayor’s call for everyone to heed the evacuation order.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau also said he was in contact with Braun Tuesday, as well as with mayors of other cities and towns hard-hit by the storm.

To the people of Abbotsford, Chilliwack, Hope, and Merritt: I know you’re going through an extremely difficult time. I spoke with your mayors – @MayorHenryBraun, Ken Popove, @PeterRobbHope, and Linda Brown – and let them know we’ll help you get through this and rebuild after.

— Justin Trudeau (@JustinTrudeau) November 17, 2021