Search continues for fire chief who may have been swept away

CACHE CREEK, B.C. — Hope is fading in the search for a missing British Columbia fire chief feared to have been swept away in swollen creek has resumed, the community’s mayor said.

Clayton Cassidy of Cache Creek in B.C.’s Interior disappeared early Friday morning, RCMP said.

He was last known to be checking creek flow levels at a campground east of the village as snowmelt and rain was causing floods in the region. Mayor John Ranta said Saturday there is still no sign of Cassidy “but we remain cautiously optimistic that he will be found alive, although hope is fading for that.’’

Search and rescue crews from Kamloops, Vernon, Pemberton and Ashcroft have been involved in the effort to locate the 59-year-old fire chief. Waters were still moving very fast Saturday and where water has receded, branches, mud and debris have been left behind.

Heavy machines have been brought in to remove piles of broken wood from the front of the fire hall.