Woman who survived deadly torrent released from B.C. dam sues regional district

spaminator

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Woman who survived deadly torrent released from B.C. dam sues regional district
Author of the article:Canadian Press
Canadian Press
Publishing date:Sep 21, 2022 • 1 day ago • 2 minute read • Join the conversation

VANCOUVER — A woman whose husband saw a “wall of water rushing toward them” as the pair fled a huge torrent released from a North Vancouver dam is suing Metro Vancouver’s regional district for negligence.


The notice of civil claim filed by Chihiro Nakamura says she and her husband were sitting on a rock in a shallow part of the Capilano River below the Cleveland Dam when they heard a rushing sound.


The B.C. Supreme Court lawsuit says there had been no warning on Oct. 1, 2020, when water from the 91-metre dam came pouring down the canyon, rising by nearly 3.6 metres and killing two fishermen downstream.

Nakamura’s husband made it to shore, but the lawsuit says she had to climb onto a tree hanging over the river, where “she thought she was going to die” until she was rescued by firefighters.

The legal action filed this month says Nakamura suffered physical injuries as well as post-traumatic stress disorder, and asks the court to grant damages for pain and suffering, loss of income and other alleged losses, such as the cost of medication.


A statement from the commissioner of the regional district, Jerry Dobrovolny, says Metro Vancouver began an “urgent and comprehensive review” after the release, looking at programming, operations, and internal protocols at the site, and a public alarm system was installed in May 2021.

Dobrovolny said shortly after the water release that a gate controlling the flow of water had come down too quickly during maintenance work on the dam, and the district’s preliminary investigation found human error was the clearest factor.

The district takes full responsibility for the mistake, he said at the time.

It dismissed three employees after the incident.

Metro Vancouver received Nakamura’s claim last week, Dobrovolny’s latest statement says.

“Over the past two years, we have had no direct contact from the couple other than receiving their claims this past Friday, and they have made no prior attempts to work with us or notify us about their experience,” it says.

Metro Vancouver has consulted with the public and stakeholders to learn about their experiences along the river, while studying its hydrology and conducting surveys to determine patterns of public use to inform long-term public safety enhancements, the statement adds.
 

petros

The Central Scrutinizer
Nov 21, 2008
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Low Earth Orbit
Woman who survived deadly torrent released from B.C. dam sues regional district
Author of the article:Canadian Press
Canadian Press
Publishing date:Sep 21, 2022 • 1 day ago • 2 minute read • Join the conversation

VANCOUVER — A woman whose husband saw a “wall of water rushing toward them” as the pair fled a huge torrent released from a North Vancouver dam is suing Metro Vancouver’s regional district for negligence.


The notice of civil claim filed by Chihiro Nakamura says she and her husband were sitting on a rock in a shallow part of the Capilano River below the Cleveland Dam when they heard a rushing sound.


The B.C. Supreme Court lawsuit says there had been no warning on Oct. 1, 2020, when water from the 91-metre dam came pouring down the canyon, rising by nearly 3.6 metres and killing two fishermen downstream.

Nakamura’s husband made it to shore, but the lawsuit says she had to climb onto a tree hanging over the river, where “she thought she was going to die” until she was rescued by firefighters.

The legal action filed this month says Nakamura suffered physical injuries as well as post-traumatic stress disorder, and asks the court to grant damages for pain and suffering, loss of income and other alleged losses, such as the cost of medication.


A statement from the commissioner of the regional district, Jerry Dobrovolny, says Metro Vancouver began an “urgent and comprehensive review” after the release, looking at programming, operations, and internal protocols at the site, and a public alarm system was installed in May 2021.

Dobrovolny said shortly after the water release that a gate controlling the flow of water had come down too quickly during maintenance work on the dam, and the district’s preliminary investigation found human error was the clearest factor.

The district takes full responsibility for the mistake, he said at the time.

It dismissed three employees after the incident.

Metro Vancouver received Nakamura’s claim last week, Dobrovolny’s latest statement says.

“Over the past two years, we have had no direct contact from the couple other than receiving their claims this past Friday, and they have made no prior attempts to work with us or notify us about their experience,” it says.

Metro Vancouver has consulted with the public and stakeholders to learn about their experiences along the river, while studying its hydrology and conducting surveys to determine patterns of public use to inform long-term public safety enhancements, the statement adds.
Ummmm there is signage. WTF?

1663862498178.png
 

pgs

Hall of Fame Member
Nov 29, 2008
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A brain comes in handier....but!

Heavy rain...70m dam, signage everywhere, is a no brainer.

You figure it out.
Still they should have a warning horn as on some Vancouver Island rivers .
 

harrylee

Man of Memes
Mar 22, 2019
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Is this a common thing at this dam? If so, no one should be allowed access while this is going on.

2 fishermen killed downstream also. Someone should be on the hook for this.
 

pgs

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I learned about the warning horn when I first started fishing there in the very early 90's-as time went by I fished it less & less so I don't know if that safety feature was discontinued at some point.
To much effort for little reward fishing there , IMO .
 

Taxslave2

House Member
Aug 13, 2022
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I thought there is a horn on the Cap. But since the release was accidental, there was no time to activate it. Or maybe they had to remove it because of noise complaints.
In 17 languages like SGI offers for their services? That’s a big sign or a lot of smaller ones repeated often. What about the illiterate? “Please God, Won’t Someone Think About The Illiterate??!!”
Need signage in Brail too. Nobody ever thinks of the blind and deaf tourists in parks.
 

The_Foxer

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Aug 9, 2022
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Were there any dark riders attempting to cross at the time? I believe that's considered a reasonable excuse....

I dunno, i mean I was taught day one that any creek or river could surge suddenly and to always be on the lookout and keep that in mind. And there are warnings. At the same time, this isn't just a sudden rising of water, it's more like a tsunami and obviously a dangerous condition was caused by human error. That's not ok.

I'll be interesting to see what happens - it's unlikely to make it to court but if it does it would be interesting to see the judges take.