It was 70 years ago the Fraser Valley experienced one of the worst floods in current recollection.
Several folks were killed, countless were evacuated, thousands lost their homes, and Metro Vancouver was cut off from the rest of the country because high waters breached the dikes and flooded thousands of acres of land including rail and roads.
Nicknamed the “great” flood of 1948, it changed a lot of development visions for the communities – like Langley – that are located along the Fraser River.
Well, Langley historian and author Jane Watt is going to be talking about the floods on radio Wednesday.
She’s been invited to join retired broadcaster and fellow Langley historian Mark Forsythe on air in his new, monthly podcast show on CIVL radio in Abbotsford.
Watt is author of e, a book specifically focused on the devastation caused by the flood.
“We also hear from people who lived through it in the Langley region, drawing on the oral history,” Forsythe said, pointing to recollections fo Connie Winter, Mabel Holding, and Ken Robinson.
“Each has a vivid memory of the flood, which virtually cut off the Fraser Valley from the rest of the province.”
BACKGROUND: Retired Fort Langley broadcaster gives voice to local history
Forsythe’s show, Valley Voices, offers a glimpse into the past for communities up and down the Fraser Valley.
The show, which debuted in March, airs on the first Wednesday of each month, at 11 a.m. That month’s show is then rebroadcast each Wednesday that month, again at 11 a.m.It’s also available online.
“Since Valley Voices began in March, I’ve heard from people throughout the Fraser Valley – from Hope to Maple Ridge and Surrey – many with story suggestions that I’ll attempt to follow up on,” he shared with the Langley Advance.
In June, he’s planning to visit two Fraser Valley heritage sites that people will want to put on their summer travel itinerary, those being the Kilby Historic Site at Harrison Mills and the CN Station in Fort Langley.
RELATED: Langley historian explores role nursing sisters made in the Great War
