Aerial view of the Merritt flood on Monday, Nov. 15 (Image Credit: Global BC)

By Chad Klassen

MERRITT FLOOD

Kamloops Search and Rescue play role in rescuing Merritt residents from flood waters

Nov 22, 2021 | 3:14 PM

KAMLOOPS — It’s been a busy week for members of Kamloops Search and Rescue (KSAR), which has been helping with Shannon White’s disappearance and also rescuing Merritt residents trapped in flood waters last week.

KSAR manager Alan Hobler says the agency got a call at 2:30 Monday morning and sent a swift water rescue team down to Merritt after the Coldwater River had breached its banks.

Hobler says between KSAR and Nicola Valley Search and Rescue, they were able to save about a dozen people.

“Initially, we were called to assist with delivering evacuation alerts. Pretty quickly we realized that there were many homes that were flooded and people that were stranded inside their homes,” said Hobler. “We had to use boats to access some homes to rescue these people that were stranded.”

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Hobler says what made the rescues even more challenging is the members were trying to save people in contaminated sewage water.

“It was a challenging operation. The water was contaminated, so the sewer system backed up, so our volunteers were out there working in the sewage rescuing people,” he said.

During the rescue efforts, Hobler says KSAR’s truck, which was sitting in the middle of flood waters, was stolen. Luckily, the truck was returned to the search team the next day.