Storm hammers Shuswap

Photo: NewsKamloops.com

Residents are cleaning up the aftermath of damage from a huge storm that hit Magna Bay Resort and other Shuswap Lake communities on the weekend.

The deluge was part of a thunder, lightning and rain storm that swept the region Saturday evening, uprooting trees, knocking down power lines, blocking roads and damaging homes. 

The roof and back walls were torn off one log house, with furniture and debris strewn on the ground, but bunk beds, cabinets and wall hangings remained intact inside what was once a bedroom.  

Winds gusted to 80 km/h.

Some weekenders who had intended to leave the area to return home Sunday morning were forced to remain because of the downed trees.

B.C. Hydro crews worked throughout the night and into Sunday restoring power all over the Shuswap, with Magna Bay the hardest hit. 

Hydro said late Sunday that trees on roads continued to hinder access in the Salmon Arm area. Eagle Bay, where 900 people lost power, and Blind Bay also saw extensive damage. Outages affected 3,300 in Sicamous, Anglemont and Sorrento.

The storm was reminiscent of a similar late-summer storm that hit the Thompson-Shuswap almost exactly four years ago. At the time, Magna Bay resident Bryan Johnson said it "sounded like an express train."

The pattern was similar — rain and wind swept through Kamloops first and struck Shuswap Lake an hour and a half later. More than 11,000 customers were without power in that one; about 14,000 were affected by Saturday night's storm.

– NewsKamloops.com