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Presumed dead in flood

UPDATE 7:30 A.M.

Two men are presumed dead in the aftermath of severe flooding caused by warm temperatures and heavy rainfall in British Columbia's Interior.

RCMP spokesman Dan Moskaluk said on Sunday that Clayton Cassidy, a fire chief in Cache Creek, remains unaccounted for two days after he was believed to have been swept away by large waterway west of Kamloops.

The 59-year-old man was last known to be checking water levels in Cache Creek early Friday and his car was later found by the site.

In the Shuswap, RCMP confirmed Sunday afternoon that the search for a 76-year-old man whose home in Tappen, north of Salmon Arm, was “completely enveloped” in a mudslide was also a recovery effort. An urban search and rescue team from Vancouver had been called in to aid in that search.

Salmon Arm RCMP Staff Sgt. Scott West told reporters the victim’s family had been notified, but that police would not be releasing his name Sunday out of respect to family members.

“They’re upset, but they’re understanding of the situation because they’ve actually been up to the site and have an appreciation of the scope of the slide and the debris that’s come down off the side of this mountain,” West said of the victim’s family.

-with files from CTV Vancouver 


The search continues for two men missing in this weekend's floods.

Warm temperatures and heavy rainfall have contributed to overflowing waterways and destructive mudslides across significant portions of southern British Columbia.

RCMP spokesman Dan Moskaluk said on Sunday that Cassidy Clayton, a fire chief in Cache Creek, remains unaccounted for two days after he was believed to have been swept away by a swollen waterway west of Kamloops.

The 59-year-old man was last known to be checking water levels in Cache Creek early Friday and his vehicle was later found at the site.

The Mounties say Clayton is presumed dead and the search has turned into a recovery effort.

A statement from the Columbia Shuswap Regional District says an urban search and rescue team from Vancouver continues to look for a 76-year-old man whose Sunnybrae home north of Salmon Arm was "completely enveloped" in a mudslide Saturday.

"Drier weather is expected ... into the early part of next week, and conditions are expected to improve over this time," a statement said. "Some additional rainfall is forecast in the southern Rocky Mountains on Sunday, and may lead to increased flows locally."



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