WEDNESDAY SEPTEMBER 2, 2015
HOMELESS CAMP BLAZE No injuries in another fire at Gladys Avenue site A3
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Region slammed by fierce windstorm Damage and power outages across the Valley PGA TOUR PLAYOFFS
Laura Rodgers Abbotsford News
Local nursery owner Vitali Loutov has weathered plenty of uncertainty during his 16 years growing garden plants on the Sumas Prairie. But none of it was enough to prepare him for the damage from last weekend’s heavy wind storms. “The wind started blowing like crazy. Trees shaking. I knew it was a really hard wind,” said Loutov, who sells items from his five-acre operation to plant stores all over B.C. High winds damaged four of his six greenhouses, with wooden beams snapped and plastic covers shredded. Between the costs of materials, labour, and lost sales, he expects the storm will set him back over $30,000. “It’s a big loss, because I have to rebuild it and that costs lots of money. How [my nursery] can survive over wintertime, that’s my biggest worry.” Loutov isn’t alone. Across the Fraser Valley, heavy windstorms toppled trees, damaged buildings, cut off power and closed roads. For most of Abbotsford, the bulk of the damage was done by Saturday evening, but Sumas Prairie residents report getting a second round of damaging wind Sunday. BC Hydro reported nearly half a million customers were without power during and after the storm, including 29,392 in Abbotsford and 13,446 in Mission. Of those, thousands lost electricity for days as power crews worked to restore the widespread damage. Environment Canada says this was the strongest storm seen in the area since Continued on A3
A30 Local golf pros’ run in the post-season comes to an end following play at The Barclays
CHILD SEX OFFENCES A7 Man faces multiple counts after disturbing images found on sold computer
SCHOOL DISTRICT SEES CHANGES A5 New programs and educational focus come with start of new school year ■
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85¢ Vitali Loutov, owner of a local plant nursery in the Sumas Prairie area, had his greenhouses severely damaged LAURA RODGERS Abbotsford News by windstorms on the weekend.
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