Image credit: CFJC Today/Anthony Corea

By Marty Hastings

STORM WREAKS HAVOC

VIDEO: ‘There was a tree at our door’: Kamloops resident talks storm; downed tree injures one person in Riverside Park

Aug 24, 2024 | 11:51 AM

Carey Marchand is among residents at 1450 Springhill Dr. who were impacted by the storm that blew through the Kamloops area on Friday (Aug. 23) evening.

“Literally was just thinking there is a thunderstorm coming and I was expecting to hear some thunder,” Marchand said. “All of a sudden, there was this loud bang and it was totally something I’ve never heard before.

“I jumped up and I was like, ‘What was that?’ The kids come running and we come to look and there was a tree at our door.”

Driving rain and howling wind wreaked havoc across the city.

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Kamloops Fire Rescue (KFR) platoon captain Ken Hartt said KFR responded to 14 calls within 25 minutes of the storm beginning, noting power lines, trees and debris came down amid the tempest weather.

One person in Riverside Park suffered minor injuries due to a felled tree and was taken to Royal Inland Hospital by BC Ambulance, said Hartt.

The park was closed while the City of Kamloops conducted an assessment of trees in the area, Hartt said, noting no fires sparked during the storm.

BC Hydro reported outages, including one affecting nearly 1,300 customers in Brocklehurst and another impacting more than 1,600 customers in Clearwater.

There were also reports of materials flying off of downtown buildings, including at Royal Inland Hospital.