B.C. government orders closure of Abbotsford rest stop encampment with ‘no warning’

The B.C. government has ordered the closure of the Cole Road rest stop in Abbotsford.

The rest stop, just off Highway 1, has become an encampment for people, with RVs, vans, cars and a school bus making a permanent home there.

But now, they have been ordered to move.

Joseph Sikora, director of Ground Zero Ministries in Abbotsford, said this notice from the government came with no warning and services to the rest stop have been cut off.

“These individuals, they don’t have any water, they have no power, they do not have anywhere to dump their refuse of the trailers and something else to highlight is that they have also removed the garbage bins from there, so there is no more garbage cleanup,” he told Global News.

“And the residents that are there, they use those services, you know.”