Some High River residents allowed home Saturday
Posted Jun 28, 2013 8:17 pm.
This article is more than 5 years old.
It’s the news evacuated High River residents have been waiting for.
Some residents are being allowed back home starting Saturday. The rest can begin touring the flood-ravaged town Friday night by bus.
The tours will run at 6 p.m. and 8 p.m. on Friday night, and will continue throughout the day on Saturday.
The buses will leave from the Okotoks, Blackie and Nanton evacuation centres.
For more information, see the release from the Alberta Government below:
Some residents of High River can return to their homes tomorrow (Saturday, June 29), and others will be able to tour the community by bus, said Rick Fraser, the Associate Minister of Regional Recovery and Reconstruction for High River.
Fraser also announced a three-phase re-entry plan for residents of the flood-ravaged town.
“Our priority is to enable the return of residents to their homes in a safe and orderly fashion as quickly as possible, with a view to supporting further recovery and the long-term restoration of High River,” Fraser said.
The re-entry plan includes three phases:
Phase One – The town is made safe;
Phase Two – Staged re-entry of residents; and
Phase Three – Termination of the state of emergency.
Work on phase one of the plan is well underway. Fraser will conduct a safety assessment this (Friday) afternoon. Following the assessment, residents will be able to tour areas of the town by bus, starting this evening and continuing tomorrow.
Beginning tomorrow (Saturday) at noon, a staged re-entry will begin for residents in the north-west quadrant of the town whose homes are safe. Construction has begun on temporary housing solutions for those residents whose homes require significant repair or renovation, and those whose homes are uninhabitable.
The High River Welcome Centre is being established to support returning residents. This will be a ‘one stop shop’ to provide returning residents with information and resources to support re-entry, including social services (such as post-traumatic stress counseling) and administrative support, such as personal documentation.
