B.C. storm claims exceed Cdn$30 million mark

Insurance claims have exceeded Cdn$30 million after a fierce Nov. 15 storm that caused a boil-water advisory in the Vancouver area, according to IBC regional officials quoted in the Victoria Times-Colonist.

Lindsay Olson, B.C.-Yukon vice-president of IBC, said insurance claims for storm damage had passed the $20-million mark as of Nov. 22. “Right now we’re looking probably around $30 million,” she told the Times-Colonist. “And there’s still losses being reported, so it’s definitely in flux.”

According to the Victoria newspaper, Olson said the loss totals do not include business revenues lost by restaurants, coffee shops and other businesses that depend on clean water. Those losses are almost certainly not covered by insurance, the paper cites Olson as saying.

As a result of torrential rainstorms in November, a boil-water advisory for Vancouver, Burnaby and much of the North Shore was extended beyond nine days. On Nov. 16, the Greater Vancouver Regional District (GVRD) medical health department advised all areas in the Greater Vancouver area about deteriorating drinking water quality.

According to the CBC, more than 200,000 B.C. Hydro customers lost electrical power in the storm, which packed winds of 100 km-h. The hardest-hit southern coastal areas included Surrey, Langley, Abbotsford and Maple Ridge. The City of Port Alberni was flooded with 130 millimetres of rain.