TL;DR: Zeballos, British Columbia, is expected to keep its evacuation order and alerts in place through at least Friday, Nov. 13, as forecasters warn another storm could drop more than 250 millimetres of rain on parts of Vancouver Island.
The Village of Zeballos has not lifted the evacuation order it issued on Nov. 6, when a landslide and flooding hit the community, and the Strathcona Regional District says residents should plan for the measures to remain through at least Friday, Nov. 13, 2026. Ten addressed properties on Maquinna Avenue and Pandora Crescent are still under order, along with vacant lots named in the order. A new storm was forecast to reach Vancouver Island early on Nov. 10, with 150 to 200 millimetres expected on west and central Vancouver Island and more than 250 possible locally, CBC News reported.
Which Zeballos properties remain under evacuation order
The order covers five Maquinna Avenue addresses — 108, 110, 112, 116 and 118 — and five on Pandora Crescent: 202, 203, 206, 207 and 214. Vacant and unaddressed lots listed in the official order are included as well. Alerts remain for 10 other Maquinna Avenue addresses (101, 102, 104, 105, 106, 107, 109, 111, 113 and 115), for 402, 404 and 406 Ferris Road, and for other listed lots. People under an alert may stay home but must be ready to leave on short notice, the district says.
The village declared a state of local emergency on Nov. 6. That declaration remains in force for 14 days, until the end of Nov. 20, 2026, unless it is cancelled or extended. Zeballos has about 125 residents, and Mayor Bob Berthelotte told CBC News that no evacuation order had covered such a broad area since a wildfire eight years before. The Strathcona Regional District activated its emergency operations centre, CBC News reported.
How the emergency unfolded
Heavy rain began overnight and flooding hit the village early on Nov. 6, Ehattesaht First Nation Chief Simon John told CBC News. The initial order covered 22 properties on Pandora Crescent and Maquinna Avenue, with an alert for three Ferris Road addresses, while officials encouraged people on Pandora, Gold Valley and Reno roads to stay in their homes. John said about 140 millimetres of rain had fallen in roughly 12 hours, and that a 2018 wildfire had damaged the mountainside slope above the village. A Nov. 8 amendment, made after a geotechnical assessment, let residents at 10 Maquinna Avenue properties return home under alert.
Why the order is staying in place
In its Nov. 9 update, the Strathcona Regional District said every evacuation order and alert would stay in force until further notice, pointing to advice from geotechnical specialists and unsettled weather. The next community update is expected on Friday, Nov. 13, after conditions are forecast to improve.
"We can't start doing any mitigation measures until that area has been thoroughly assessed by the geotechnical engineer," Bonnie Logan, the district's acting manager of emergency services, told CBC News. She said incoming storms had left no window to complete the work.
Power had been out for multiple days, CBC News reported. Maquinna Road is open but is a no-stopping zone; the district asks people to limit travel through the area to essential trips and to avoid stopping, parking or lingering along it.
What the new storm could bring
Environment and Climate Change Canada issued an orange rainfall warning for west and central Vancouver Island on Nov. 9, forecasting 150 to 200 millimetres, with more than 250 millimetres possible locally. The agency said a "very robust frontal system" was set to make landfall very early on Nov. 10, with heavy rain until Nov. 11 morning and moderate rain until Nov. 12 morning.
The warning notes that flooding is likely in places, some roads may become impassable, and landslides are possible on steep terrain, in areas stripped of trees or where fires burned recently. People should keep clear of creeks, rivers and culverts. The B.C. River Forecast Centre issued flood watches for the South Coast, Vancouver Island, the Central Coast and Fraser Valley-North, warning that some rivers could reach or exceed flows expected once every five to 10 years, and asking residents to clear leaves from storm drains. The centre said warm temperatures through Nov. 11 could add snowmelt from shallow snowpacks at higher elevations.
Nearly 415,000 BC Hydro customers lost power at some point since Nov. 6, and about 13,300 were still offline late on Nov. 9, The Globe and Mail reported.
If you are under an evacuation order
The Village of Zeballos order tells anyone in an affected area to leave immediately and register with Emergency Support Services at the Zeballos Fire Hall, 155 Maquinna Avenue, or by calling 250-830-6702. The district says evacuees staying with friends or family may also qualify for help with basic needs, and that assistance is not retroactive, so evacuees should register while displaced.
Before leaving, the order asks residents to secure windows and doors, switch off gas and electrical equipment other than fridges and freezers, and shut gates without locking them. It says to take medication, a purse, wallet and keys only if within immediate reach, to move pets in carriers or on leashes, to use as few vehicles as possible, and to keep phone lines free except for emergency calls.
Residents can sign up for alerts through the Alertable app or at srd.ca/alerts. Official notices and maps are posted at srd.ca/eoc.
What federal evacuation guidance adds
The U.S. Fire Administration published its National Wildfire Evacuation Planning Guidance on June 24, 2026. The first edition offers an adaptable framework for agencies at every level, from federal and state to local, tribal and territorial governments, includes a wildfire evacuation plan template, and covers planning for evacuations that arrive with warning and those that arrive without it, decision-making and communication during an event, and recovery, repopulation and evaluation afterward.
What happens next
The orders and alerts stay in force until officials amend or lift them. The next scheduled community update is Friday, Nov. 13, 2026, unless conditions require one sooner, according to the Strathcona Regional District. The district said public safety is still the top priority and that staff are consulting geotechnical specialists about when it will be safe to relax or remove the measures. Residents can check srd.ca/eoc or call 250-830-6702.
Sources: Zeballos EOC Update 7; More than 250 mm of rain forecast for some B.C. areas as storm makes landfall; B.C. River Forecast Centre flood watch.