Port of Vancouver operations update

November 18, 2021

To Port of Vancouver’s valued customers and stakeholders,

The Port of Vancouver handles the most diversified cargo in North America. Therefore, current impacts to any particular supply chain will vary. Our supply chain partners including railways and terminals, and lead agencies at various levels of government, are still assessing damage and impact in our region. As with everyone involved in the response to this situation, the priority is life safety and prioritization of essential services first.

The Vancouver gateway is experiencing significantly disrupted rail and truck movement due to widespread flooding throughout the Metro Vancouver and Fraser Valley regions.

British Columbia’s Minister of Public Safety and Solicitor General Mike Farnworth declared a provincial state of emergency effective November 17, 2021. The state of emergency applies to the entire province of B.C. for an initial 14-day period and may be extended or rescinded as conditions require. The state of emergency enables federal, provincial and local governments to allocate resources and deliver a coordinated response to protect the public, mitigate impacts on transportation networks and movement of essential goods and supplies, and to support the province-wide response and recovery.

A copy of the provincial state of emergency declaration can be found here:  State of Emergency Declaration

The federal government is providing additional personnel and resources to assist in the flood stricken areas where multiple evacuation orders remain in place.

Rail lines between Kamloops and Vancouver remain closed as both CN and CP crews and engineering teams continue to clear debris and conduct repairs at multiple locations. A timeline for the resumption of rail operations to the west coast is currently unavailable.

Vessel delays and heightened anchorage demand due to disrupted terminal operations are expected. Vessels in port can be viewed on the home page of the PortVan eHub app by selecting “Vessels in Port”.

Flooding impacts on highways remain severe and widespread throughout southwestern B.C. The intermittent opening of one highway route allowed some passenger traffic to flow out of the impacted areas towards Vancouver.  All highways remain closed to non-essential traffic as work crews continue with reconstruction and repairs. Damage assessments of roadway infrastructure are ongoing.

We will continue to monitor the situation and keep you informed on any new developments as they arise.

Real-time insights into Port of Vancouver operations can be accessed through the PortVan eHub app. The PortVan eHub app can be downloaded at https://www.portvancouver.com/port-dashboard/ehub-app or through the App Store (search for PortVan eHub or Port of Vancouver). Additionally, daily updates on import rail performance and weekly updates on truck terminal turn time performance are available through the port authority’s website at https://www.portvancouver.com/port-dashboard/.

Resources:

  • PortVan eHub app: access real-time insights into Port of Vancouver operations via the port’s mobile app eHub.  Download from the port’s website (eHub) or through the App Store (search for “PortVan eHub” or “Port of Vancouver”)
  • Port dashboard: view updates on import rail performance, truck terminal turn times, and gateway vessel on-time performance through the port’s website (Performance Metrics).
  • Port operations updates: Operations Updates
  • State of Emergency Declaration:  State of Emergency Declaration (issued November 17, 2021)

Pease feel free to forward this update within your organization.

Thank you for your continued support of the Port of Vancouver.