The meat section at Wal-Mart on Alderbridge Way in Richmond appeared depleted in a photo posted online on Wednesday afternoon.
Moe Leghari posted photos of almost-empty meat shelves on Richmond Rants, Raves & Rapport, saying “Oh no, don’t tell me this is happening again?!?”
With roads cut off to the Interior of B.C. and several dairy farms in the Fraser Valley underwater, there are fears food and essential items will run out.
Early in the pandemic, store shelves were quickly depleted of essential items, especially toilet paper, as consumers panicked thinking supply chains would shut down.
The president of the B.C. Trucking Association, Dave Earle, is telling people now to stay calm, and, while things might come a bit more slowly and cost more, “your goods will still get there.”
“It may take a little longer, and it may have to take a different way to get to where it needs to go. It may also be a little more expensive. But it’s OK because it will get there,” he said.
A mudslide shut down Highway 7 earlier this week and Highway 1 was closed near Abbotsford with fears of Sumas Prairie flooding. The Sumas area is home to several dairy farms that supply milk across B.C.
Currently, Highway 7 is only open in the Agassiz area westbound for limited traffic.
Furthermore, both major railway lines, CN and CP, are out of service between Vancouver and Kamloops because of washouts and landslides.
Crews are working at multiple sites to clear debris and repair damaged rail lines but it’s not known when rail operations will be fully restored, according to the Port of Vancouver.
Despite “significantly disrupted rail and truck movement” because of flooding, Port of Vancouver marine terminals are still operating, explained a port spokesperson.
- with files from Tyler Orton/BIV
