Cleveland Dam disaster survivor suing Metro Vancouver, claiming negligance
Global News
The accidental opening of a spillway on the dam in 2020 killed one person, and left another person missing and presumed dead.
A Vancouver woman who was rescued from the Capilano River canyon after the deadly 2020 Cleveland Dam accident is suing Metro Vancouver and the regional water district.
On Oct. 1, 2020, the dam’s spillway was mistakenly opened, sending a massive volume of water surging down the canyon and catching people recreating in the area unaware.
Officials confirmed the disaster killed one person, and another person remains missing and presumed dead. Metro Vancouver later confirmed the incident was a result of human error “related to programming of the control system for the spillway gate,” and fired three people.
In a notice of civil claim filed earlier this month, Chihiro Nakamura, who survived the disaster, claims the incident was the result of negligence on the part of the regional district.
“The Cleveland Dam did not have any or any adequate alarms or warning systems to warn visitors to the said park should there be a malfunction or human error in the operation of the flow levels of the water escaping the dam, despite a history of dangers and harms from this source known to the defendants with respect to visitors to the park,” the suit claims.
Nakamura further claims she was left with physical injuries along with damaged mental health, including post-traumatic stress disorder and sleeplessness.
According to the suit, Nakamura and her husband Mateusz Wiacek were sitting on a rock in the canyon, about a kilometre south of the dam when the spillway opened.
“Suddenly and without warning the plaintiff could hear a rushing sound behind her. When her husband turned his head around, he saw a wall of water rushing toward them, and he yelled to the plaintiff sitting beside him to run.”
