Just before 4pm this afternoon, the City of Merritt announced that they have got critical infrastructure to a point where some people can go home. There will be three phases to this plan:

Phase 1: North of the RCMP Station

Phase 2: Between the RCMP Station and Nicola Avenue

Phase 3: South of Nicola Avenue

For detailed info on the Return Home Plan, visit Return Home Plan page by clicking here.

For additional inquiries, contact the Return Home Information Line between 8:00 AM – 6:00 PM daily at 1-877-655-0341 or email returnhome@merritt.ca

Rapid damage assessments are complete and the City is in the process of contacting those property owners with properties deemed unsafe (red). Concurrently, the City is developing a plan to communicate rapid damage assessment information to residents and to enable daytime only access to most portions of the phase 3 area. This will allow residents to collect belongings, assess damage, and begin cleaning and damage mitigation activities, prior to lifting the evacuation order for this area.

Meanwhile, late yesterday, the State of Local Emergency in the City of Merritt was renewed for another 7 days.