Deadly storm cuts Vancouver off from rest of Canada
- Major road routes to Vancouver closed after torrential rain across British Columbia
- Flooding and mudslides come less than six months after a wildfires gutted town
Authorities in Canada said at least one person died and two were missing and in torrential rains that trapped motorists in mudslides, forced thousands to evacuate their homes and cut off Vancouver from the rest of the country.
Search and rescue teams recovered the body of a woman from a mudslide near Lillooet, 250km (155 miles) north of Vancouver, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police said.
Staff Sergeant Janelle Shoihet added that investigators have received two missing person reports, but that they believe “there may have been other occupied vehicles that were lost in the slide”.
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Vancouver cut off from rest of Canada as deadly storm leads to floods
“The total number of people and vehicles unaccounted for has not been confirmed,” she said.
The rains had let up by late Tuesday. But mudslides, rocks and debris washed out several highways leading to Vancouver, trapping hundreds of motorists who were rescued by helicopters by nightfall on Monday.
Local television showed video footage of the Trans Canada highway – which connects the coastal city to the rest of the country – inundated. A bridge was also washed out.