Image copyright Richard Sims Courtesy of Richard Sims
Ottawa is clarifying how Ottawa, Saskatchewan and Alberta can travel between their borders with British Columbia for flood relief following the Saskatchewan provincial flooding earlier this month.
An advisory from Canada’s Public Safety Minister Ralph Goodale says people going to Vancouver, Banff and Jasper for repairs to flood damage can do so without worrying about crossing the U.S. border.
Ottawa was looking to clarify legislation, legislation that’s been in place since 2008 which says there are exceptions to travel bans – including if there’s a significant humanitarian or public emergency.
Goodale announced on Thursday that travellers from Saskatchewan, Manitoba and Alberta are allowed into B.C. and the rest of Canada until the province’s roads are passable again.
The World Bank estimates that about 95,000 British Columbians are affected by flooding in at least one of its four flood zones, affecting farms, houses, roads and bridges.