People stranded in Squamish Valley after bridge was torn apart by floodwaters

For a Vancouver couple, a day trip to the great outdoors turned into a terrifying experience.

May and Oleg Zadnipryany drove to Squamish Valley on Saturday morning via a remote logging road to take in the views of the Squamish River. But the trip didn’t go as planned.

On the way back, the couple reached a bridge at kilometre 30 of Squamish Valley Road and realised the line of cars in front of them had stopped.

“We come out and there’s no bridge,” May Zadnipryany told CTV News. “You can only see two pipes along the side.”

A broken bridge on a forest road in the Squamish Valley on Saturday, September 14. (Courtesy of Oleg Zadnipryany)The bridge was washed away, leaving a muddy crevasse in the road and steep embankments on either side.

“How do we get out of here? We’re stuck here,” she recalls thinking.

The couple had no plans to stay overnight in the valley and did not bring extra food. Zadnipryany said she was worried she would not make it back to Vancouver, where she worked in health care.

The Zadnipryanys waited for several hours, thinking help might be on the way. After seeing one man make it, they decided to abandon the truck and try to cross the debris field on foot, putting aside fears of being swept away by the river.

The effort involved climbing over slippery piles of mud and crawling through filth. Zadnipryany climbed first on the other side to throw a rope to her husband.

“We made it, but it was really scary,” Zadnipryany said.

A broken bridge on a forest road in the Squamish Valley on Saturday, September 14. (Courtesy of Oleg Zadnipryany)The couple then walked for two hours on a dirt road until they came across a good Samaritan who offered to drive them back to Highway 99.

After reaching Sea to Sky, the final step of their adventure was a $300 taxi ride. They arrived home around 11:30 p.m.

“It was a nightmare,” Zadnipryany said, recalling the ordeal. But she worries most about the people who may still be stuck behind the washed-out bridge.

When the Zadnipryanys arrived, there were already a handful of nature lovers there — including two families with small children — and there may have been more en route from campsites along the route.

Zadnipryany does not know whether any of the trapped people reached the other side or whether rescue services were sent to the scene.

Posts on local Facebook groups indicate people were still stuck on the road Sunday, with commenters offering rides and deliveries. There is no cellphone coverage in the area.

CTV News has reached out to the Squamish-Lillooet Regional District, Squamish District, Squamish Search and Rescue and provincial government for additional information on the situation.

In the photo: May and Oleg Zadnipryany. (Courtesy of Oleg Zadnipryany)Another unknown is when the couple will be able to get their vehicle back, or how long it will take to rebuild the bridge. In the meantime, Zadnipryany says the incident has some lessons.

“The mud is like peanut butter, good thing I had my shoes with me,” she laughed, adding that she had brought a change of clothes, which her husband was skeptical about since they were only going on a day trip.

“It was a lesson for us to always be prepared when we go out. You never know what’s going to happen,” she said.