by Denise August Titian
Ha-Shilth-Sa Reporter
Nov. 30, 2006
Port Alberni - From sizzling summer
to pineapple punch in just over eight short weeks; people went from drought
and dried-up wells to torrential downpours and flooding after a wild rainstorm
on Nov. 15.
According to Environment Canada, a storm system originating in the Hawaiin Islands, known as the Pineapple Express, drifted across the Pacific Ocean hitting British Columbia's West Coast hard.
Heavy rain and strong winds felled trees, knocking out power lines and electricity to thousands of homes. In one day, 126.4mm of rain poured on Port Alberni as winds hit 120 kilometres per hour.
The city was cut off from the rest of the world for most of the day as both Highway 4 to Tofino and Highway 19 were closed due to flooding and debris. Yet within the city, vehicles filled with the curious flooded the streets. People were out surveying flooding and damage, or took to their vehicles to stay warm and search out food and emergency supplies.
All that was open were a couple of service stations that could only deal in cash and credit cards, since debit machines couldn't be used. Tseshaht Market, which has its own generator, looked like a WalMart on Boxing Day with people flocking to the only place in town selling hot food.
Traffic that made it up the Tofino highway was lined up by the Hollies golf course and Timberlodge Hotel as drivers waited for the road over 'The Hump" to open. Likewise, people attempting to get to Port Alberni were stranded on the east side of Cameron Lake for as many as nine hours as they waited for Cathedral Grove to be cleared of fallen trees and for the flooding to subside.
One Nuu-chah-nulth woman was forced to drive under a fallen tree that was held precariously aloft by a crackling hydro line. A nearby television news crew filmed the scene. Later she nearly drove off the severly flooded road. Her passenger said tree branches were falling all around them as they tried to get through.
Power in the city, for the most part, was restored in early evening, but neighboring communities had to wait days to have service restored. Power to Tofino, Ucluelet and Ahousaht was restored two days later. Bamfield residents had to wait four days.
In Ahousaht, the community not only had to contend with the storm, but woke early that morning to a tsunami warning, the result of a major earthquake off the coast of Japan. Residents ran for the hills, but fortunately the tsunami would not materialize.
The storm clouds came with a silver lining for Adrienne Joe of Ahousaht. With the extended power failure, Joe said her family was drawn closer together than they've normally been. "We played board games, cards, crib, dice, and even did what crafts we could together," she explained.
They spent their days keeping warm around the wood stove where they cooked all their meals, which meant the house got very hot.
The heavy rains had another lingering effect. The turbidity levels of Port Alberni drinking water casued a boil water advisory for city residents. The advisory was lifted two weeks later.
HIgh turbidity levels
occur when the water becomes murky or cloudy due to stirred up sediment.
The Port Alberni Friendship Centre abd the Bread of Life were giving away
cases of bottled water to anyone needing it.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Copyright Ha-Shilth-Sa Newspaper,
published by the Nuu-chah-nulth Tribal Council. Reproduction of this article
or photographs, in whole or in part, is illegal without the written consent
of Ha-Shilth-Sa Newspaper (hashilthsa@nuuchahnulth.org)
home
>
habitat > article
