The ripple effect from the Dec. 20 windstorm that battered our coast is still being felt.
It hit the Britannia Beach Community Dock particularly hard, causing "substantial damage to the breakwater, access point, gangway and main float of the dock," according to Chantelle Nicholls, harbourmaster of the dock.
"This has probably been one of the worst years for us at the docks, weather-wise," she said. "We've had two boats sink, one almost sank... just the amount of damage and the amount of claims that have happened there this year just due to the adverse weather is shocking."
The dock is managed by the Britannia Beach Community Association and is maintained by dock members.
Work on the facility is funded through moorage fees and sweat equity in the form of members' volunteer hours.
While they have a $20,000 contingency for repairs, the work needed to get the dock back to what it was before the recent storm could easily be $40,000 to $50,000.
Nicholls launched a GoFundMe campaign to raise funds to rebuild the dock.
"We are in dire need of emergency funds to return the facility back to its pre-storm condition," reads the Help Save the Britannia Beach Community Dock online campaign.
A few years ago, those who manage the dock spent about $15,000 to beef it up, but now those upgrades have been destroyed.
"The anchoring system is gone," Nicholls said. "Any protection we did have against winds is now gone."
Over the last years, the private facility has been opened up to outside boaters who would dock and then run across the street to grab a bite to eat or collect supplies.
"We've had really tremendous support from all sorts of boaters who have been able to utilize the dock in the last year, so it is pretty sad for me to think that all that hard work that we have done — money and time — is just gone in one storm. It is heartbreaking. "
Provincial emergency funds aren't available because it isn't a publicly-owned facility, according to Squamish-Lillooet Regional District director for the area, Tony Rainbow.
He said he will raise the issue of the needed dock repairs at the next board meeting in mid-January, but doesn't have the authority alone to access any funds.
It is unfortunate there wasn't insurance on the dock, he added.
The hope is that the regional district will eventually pair with the community members and revamp and upgrade the dock, as was done at Anderson Lake, located 25 miles north of Pemberton.
Currently, the Britannia members are working with the SLRD and planning to partner with them to have some joint tenure over the Britannia dock, according to Nicholls.
Rainbow said the situation of taking over and renovating the facility at Anderson Lake was a bit different because that dock is fully accessible to the public, but he agreed that the board is working with Britannia Beach members to come up with a long-term solution.
Rainbow and Nicholls both said that with Britannia Beach growing, it makes sense to have an expanded and revamped dock.
