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Storm leaves thousands without power, emergency in Delta

91353seawall-collapse

METRO VANCOUVER — A storm in the Fraser Valley earlier this week left 22,000 without power in Surrey, White Rock, Langley and Abbotsford on Tuesday morning.

It also had White Rock’s iconic pier and promenade shut down that evening as a result. The City of White Rock tweeted, “High winds and high tide have closed the promenade,” before 9 a.m. on Wednesday from its Twitter account (@whiterockcity).

Meanwhile in Delta, Mayor Lois Jackson declared a local state of emergency due to a storm surge in the Boundary Bay and Beach Grove.

The local state of emergency is to remain in effect for seven days, until Dec. 15 at midnight, unless otherwise cancelled.

An elevated flood risk was identified for high tide at 9 a.m. Wednesday. Forecasts indicated the high tide would coincide with a storm surge and high winds that make overtopping of the seawalls a strong possibility.

Delta staff members have been following the Staged Flood Response Plan for Boundary Bay and Beach Grove, and are at a heightened stage of readiness given the forecast.

Beach access points have been sealed, sand bags and sand are available, message boards have been activated, and additional equipment has been mobilized to the area for possible deployment in case of flooding.

Delta staff took emergency action to erect a temporary berm in place of a collapsed beach wall on Seaview Road in Boundary Bay Tuesday. The collapse was on private property and was isolated to one residence.

To contact the Delta’s engineering department, call 604-946-3260.