recovery

One year after flooding disaster, recovery continues for Fraser Valley farmers

One year after flooding disaster, recovery continues for Fraser Valley farmers

Farmer Richard Bosma points to an armpit-level felt pen mark on the wall of his milking barn to show how high the water rose during the catastrophic flooding on his Fraser Valley dairy farm almost a year ago. "So there were about 54 inches of water here at its peak," he said. In another barn, Bosma introduces assembled media and politicians to Miracle, a black-and-white, hay-munching calf that earned its name by arriving in the world immediately after its mother was rescued from the rising water.

After the flood: First Nations along B.C.'s Highway 8 work on recovery from disaster and trauma

After the flood: First Nations along B.C.'s Highway 8 work on recovery from disaster and trauma

Chief Arnie Lampreau of the Shackan Indian Band looks across the Nicola River that surged in November, pulling entire homes into its current and forcing residents to flee. Above its banks, the charred remains of yellow pines cover the mountains like burnt matchsticks — relics of a wildfire that roared across the landscape just months earlier. Lampreau grew up in the area along Highway 8 between Spences Bridge and Merritt, B.C., and said he can't help but think of the lush forests that once blanketed the hills.