Final Flood Bill Could Hit $5 Million

By 250 News

Prince George, B.C. – The bill for responding to the ice jam and flooding on the Nechako River,  is expected to finalize in the $4.5  to $5 million dollar range.  That’s the word from the Provincial Emergency Program's  Director of Operations Jim Whyte.

There have been 62 claims filed for Disaster Financial Assistance, of that number 48 are from homeowners, the balance made up of small businesses and small organizations.

Whyte says they won’t know the dollar figure for the damage estimates for a while yet as some homes still have ice in the basement “Those are the homes that will likely have the highest damage totals” says Whyte.

Assessors with the Disaster Financial Assistance program have been working with home owners to try and put a dollar figure to the damage.

The deadline for filing a claim is the 13^th,  but  Whyte doesn’t expect to see any more claims filed  “We are where we thought we would be in mid-January, as no new  claims have been filed since then.”

There will still be some costs for clean up says Whyte, as  the gabion dykes will have to be removed, “Right now they’re frozen solid ,but eventually the City will have to remove them or  sign an agreement with  property owners where the dykes are in place.”

The cost to have the raised gravel road berm removed from River Road was covered in the costs submitted when the gravel was put in place says Whyte.

Whyte says he was very impressed with the work done by Paul LaPlante and his amphibex crew.  “They cut a channel in the river and relieved a lot of backed up water, it was very effective.”  Does that mean B.C. will be looking to buy such a piece of equipment?  “I doubt it” says Whyte, “There are two smaller versions in Alberta, and one in Manitoba and we know where Mr. LaPlante lives.”  Whyte says it would be more cost effective to bring LaPlante west in the event of another serious jam, rather than have our own equipment and try to farm it out when not in use in B.C.

It could well be June before all the claims have been settled, just in time for the spring freshet.

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