After back-to-back flood events, the mayor of Princeton, B.C., says extreme weather is no longer a rare occurrence, and the federal government must step in before the next disaster hits.
The Similkameen Valley was inundated by historic flooding in November 2021, one of the worst in Princeton’s history. Just a few years later, in December 2025, another powerful atmospheric river in B.C. once again forced dozens of residents from their homes.
“This isn’t becoming a one-in-25 or one-in-200-year event, this is becoming regular,” said Princeton Mayor Spencer Coyne.
“The federal government needs to see that this is bigger than the province of British Columbia and local government. They have a serious role to play.”
Despite the scale of the damage in 2021, Princeton was denied federal mitigation funding in 2024, a decision Coyne says left the community vulnerable as extreme weather events intensify.
According to Coyne, Princeton was not alone. Other major municipalities hit by the 2021 atmospheric river, including Abbotsford and Merritt, were also turned down for funding they had been encouraged to apply for.
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“None of the main municipalities that were hit in the 2021 atmospheric river received that funding,” Coyne said.
Conservative MP Helena Konanz, who represents Similkameen—South Okanagan—West Kootenay, says Princeton did everything required to secure federal support.
“Princeton put together a plan, and it was denied,” Konanz said. “No alternative plan was offered by Ottawa.”
Konanz has now taken the issue back to the federal stage, sending a letter to Prime Minister Mark Carney urging immediate action to prioritize flood mitigation and infrastructure repairs in the Similkameen Valley.
“This is something the community needs,” she said. “It needs protection, and it needs what was promised by the federal government.”
Coyne argues dedicated federal funding is essential for communities repeatedly impacted by climate-related disasters.
“There needs to be a fund set aside for communities that are directly impacted,” he said.
Princeton is home to about 3,000 people, but its importance extends far beyond its population size. Highway 3, a critical transportation corridor for British Columbia, runs directly through the town, something Coyne says should make federal support a priority.
“When the economy of British Columbia and Western Canada depends on Highway 3 and Highway 5, we’re not some far-flung outpost,” Coyne said. “We’re part of this country’s economy.”
With only a few years separating major flood events, residents are left living with uncertainty.
“We’re all standing here wondering when the next one is going to hit us,” Coyne said, “and are we still going to be standing at the end of it.”
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