A representative from B.C.’s emergency preparedness returned to the Penticton area over the weekend to tour some of the flooding and flood preparations in the region.
Jennifer Rice, B.C.’s parliamentary secretary for emergency preparedness, first visited the region on May 2, as the Regional District of Okanagan-Similkameen was in full-response mode. At that time, Rice visited some of the worst-affected areas of the region.
Sunday’s return “focused on current issues and successes,” RDOS said in a news release. In particular, it was focused on partnerships between local Indigenous governments, municipalities, the regional district and provincial ministries.
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The regional district also updated Rice on what has been done to mitigate flood damage and how newly introduced technologies can help with decision making. The regional district also pitched the importance of long-term solutions for future savings in emergency flood responses.
Rice also got a tour of the gabion baskets, the hard plastic baskets being used along shorelines to prevent flooding, which the RDOS touts as environmentally friendly, reusable and a better barrier against waves.
“Also, Hesko bins (or gabions) are quickly filled, require less strenuous human strength (and numbers) to install and move,” the RDOS news release said.
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Rice also got a tour of Red Wing Estates, where flooding in the Penticton area was one of the most pronounced in 2017. This year, the regional district installed tiger dams, a water-filled bladder that acts as a reusable sandbag.
“These systems are quick to install and require fewer people.”
The Red Wing tiger dams were part of a partnership with the Penticton Indian Band and a training opportunity for members of the band and its natural resource and fire department.
Related: Penticton Indian Band declares state of local emergency
“We were able to fortify an area on our lands that is prone to flooding and train members in the best practices for installation,” PIB spokesperson Dawn Russel said. “Once trained, they can be dispatched where needed in the Okanagan, train others and ensure installations are consistent and perform to the highest level.”
Rice also got a tour of the Twin Lakes area, where the Canadian Armed Forces were working on a gabion and sandbag wall to protect residences along the lakeshore.