'trip from hell': landslides, flooding shut b.c. roads as rail, u.s. border traffic also hit
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a truck driver trying to haul portable camp shacks out of vancouver found himself stranded for hours in chilliwack on thursday after a mudslide cut off his route along highway 1 — one of several major corridors shut down by the b.c. government as heavy rain from an atmospheric river pummelled the fraser valley.
jesse haire left vancouver at 3:30 a.m., headed for whitehorse, when he came upon the closure. “i came out of stanley park at 3:30 a.m. and have been sitting up until i turned around at chilliwack to surrey,” he said, estimating the blockage added several extra hours to his trip.
haire’s experience highlighted a chaotic night as flooding, mudslides and washouts caused the closure multiple highways linking the lower mainland and interior, prompting the ministry of transportation to issue an advisory to avoid routes at risk of flooding, debris and high avalanche hazards.
“all travellers should be aware that conditions can change rapidly, with limited visibility due to high-intensity rainfall, pooling water, localized flooding and the potential for rising river levels to contribute to flooding in areas of the fraser valley, which could further impact road conditions,” the ministry said wednesday.
a flooded area along angus campbell road thursday.
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a mudslide on highway 1 between popkum and hope blocked the route haire was attempting to use thursday.
“it’s been the trip from hell,” haire said.
by thursday morning, most of the major routes into the lower mainland remained closed, including highway 3 between hope and princeton.
highway 1 was closed in both directions east of bridal falls, as was highway 99 east of pemberton. highway 7 was closed east of agassiz following a rock slide. highway 5 was reopened in both directions later thursday.
flooded railway at boundary road on the sumas prairie. water levels are rising on the canada-us border at huntingdon thursday, as water from recent rainfall spills into the sumas prairie. several homes on melan court were at risk of being flooded.
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thursday afternoon, emergency crews in abbotsford responded to a landslide on the southeast edge of the sumas prairie that disrupted a section of the southern railway of b.c. line, which moves freight, including farm goods and cross-border shipments between the fraser valley and vancouver.
the adverse weather also hampered cross-border travel.
the sumas border was closed to commercial traffic, and border services asked drivers to avoid highway 11 because of flooding in washington state. amtrak service between seattle and vancouver was also halted because of high water on the skagit river, and was expected to be out of operation until friday.
janelle staite, minister of transportation and infrastructure, said thursday ministry staff and maintenance crews were on the ground while ministry engineers conducted an aerial assessment by helicopter to evaluate risks and identify corridor impacts.
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“while there are road impacts, we are not near the (level) of infrastructure damage that we experienced during the 2021 event.”
buildings on jem farms flooded near the sumas border crossing in abbotsford on thursday, december 11, 2025.
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the canadian press
staite said ground patrols of highway 1 through the fraser canyon confirmed that there was no damage, and the risk of debris had subsided.
“so we’ve been able to reopen this road fully in both directions.”
geotechnical engineers will begin clearing the rockfall on highway 7, between agassiz and hope, allowing the highway to reopen to single lane, alternating traffic.
highway 1 eastbound in the bridal falls area remained closed due to a mudslide. highway 8 was closed except for local traffic.
the forecast is for rain friday. it looks like some respite with mainly cloudy skies on saturday, but that’s followed by consistent rain from sunday to at least next wednesday.
– with files from tiffany crawford and glenda luymes
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