RCMP Continue Search for Youth Lost in NS Flooding After Three Bodies Recovered

The top of a service truck is seen abandoned in floodwater following a major rain event in Halifax on July 22, 2023. (The Canadian Press/Darren Calabrese)

The search continues for a youth who went missing last weekend in torrential floodwaters northwest of Halifax, after police recovered the bodies of three other people.

RCMP Cpl. Chris Marshall says crews have drained a lake’s worth of floodwater from the primary search site in Brooklyn, N.S., where they found the bodies of a 52-year-old man and a child.

A second child’s body was found in a coastal area of a nearby county.

Marshall says search efforts for the remaining person will continue until the primary site and nearby coastal area are thoroughly explored.

Four people, including two children, went missing early Saturday after the vehicles they were in were swept off a road and submerged as they fled their homes.

Police say the fourth person they are looking for is under 18.

Torrential rain dumped up to 250 millimetres of water on some parts of the province over the weekend, washing out roads and bridges.

The province has announced assistance for those who are struggling financially in the aftermath of the flooding. The province’s Disaster Financial Assistance Program covers up to $200,000 in uninsurable losses for households, small businesses and non-profit organizations, as not all disasters are covered by private insurance.

Additionally, Ottawa has announced it will replace free of charge key travel documents that were lost, damaged or destroyed in the flood, including passports, permanent resident cards and proof of citizenship.