FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Wednesday, October 14, 2026
SURREY, BC — On June 23, regional water demand came within roughly 20 million litres of the 1.4 billion litres a day that Metro Vancouver says the system can carry while still guaranteeing pressure for firefighting and emergency response, according to records reported today by Business in Vancouver. Eight Olympic swimming pools. That was the margin between Surrey’s pool parties and car washes, and a region where fire crews could not count on their hydrants to work to capacity.
Surrey was the only one of 23 member jurisdictions to stay at Stage 2 after Metro Vancouver moved the region to Stage 3 on June 8. It was the first time in 30 years of regional water planning that a member city broke ranks. Surrey residents kept filling pools, watering new lawns, pressure washing houses, and hosing down cars while every neighbouring city went without. The Mayor said there was no risk when she knew that wasn’t true, and now the record shows it. This is the second time within a week that the Mayor has been caught with her pants on fire.
The records show the problem ran deeper than one bad decision. On June 22, Metro Vancouver’s general manager of water services wrote to Surrey’s director of utilities to say the City’s public explanation was “factually incorrect.” Surrey had told CBC Radio, and Mayor Brenda Locke had repeated to other media, that Stage 3 was about repairs to the Stanley Park water tunnel and therefore did not apply to Surrey. It was not. The regional threshold exists to protect pressure across the whole connected system, including Surrey’s hydrants. Metro Vancouver staff also say Surrey never properly informed the region of what it intended to do.
This is the same City Hall that is suing Metro Vancouver to pull out of Invest Vancouver, and the same mayor now running on a promise to reform the regional district. Residents can judge for themselves what kind of partner Surrey has been.
Mike Starchuk spent his career as a Surrey firefighter. He knows what water pressure means when a crew rolls up to a burning house. He also knows the difference between an announcement and delivery, which is why he is running to put out the fire at City Hall.
“I’ve stood at a hydrant with a hose in my hands and a family on the lawn. You do not get a second chance when the pressure drops. The mayor bet our firefighters’ water on a hot weekend,” said Starchuk.
“What bothers me most is not the decision. It’s that City Hall told residents a story the region’s own engineers called factually incorrect, and never told Metro Vancouver what it was doing. That is not standing up for Surrey. That is hiding from reality,” Starchuk said.
“If Metro Vancouver needs fixing, we should fix it. I’ve said that from day one. But you don’t earn a seat at the table to fix it by going rogue and misleading people. You earn it by keeping your word and showing a better path.”
“On October 17, Surrey can elect a mayor who won’t put your family at fire risk. Vote for Mike Starchuk and the Imagine Surrey team to put out the fire at City Hall.”
An Imagine Surrey council led by Mike Starchuk will never put your kids at risk of fire like Surrey Connect, Surrey First, and Safe Surrey coalition voted to do. Only Imagine Surrey can be trusted to keep your family safe.
Background
Metro Vancouver moved the region to Stage 2 restrictions on May 1, a month early, citing a snowpack near 20% of normal. That month, Surrey council amended its water use bylaw to allow exceptions to the standard regional restrictions. On June 8 the region moved to Stage 3 for the first time since July 2015, with a target of under 1.4 billion litres a day to protect firefighting pressure. Surrey stayed at Stage 2, alone among 23 jurisdictions, and its residents were allowed to fill pools, water new lawns, pressure wash, and wash cars.
At a special water district board meeting in June, Metro Vancouver board chair Mike Hurley said he was “shocked and bewildered” by Surrey’s decision. On June 22, Metro Vancouver’s general manager of water services wrote to Surrey’s director of utilities calling the City’s public explanation “factually incorrect.” On June 23, regional demand came within the equivalent of eight Olympic pools of the 1.4 billion litre threshold.
Surrey City Council voted unanimously across party lines to defy the restrictions. Only Imagine Surrey has said it would work with Metro Vancouver to fix it and make it work for Surrey.
Sources: Business in Vancouver, October 14, 2026; Business in Vancouver, June 2026; CBC News, June 2026; CBC News, July 2026.
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About Imagine Surrey
Imagine Surrey is a civic party running a full slate of candidates in the October 17, 2026 municipal election. Led by mayoral candidate Mike Starchuk – a former firefighter and Chief Fire Prevention Officer, former City Councillor, and former MLA for Surrey-Cloverdale – Imagine Surrey is committed to making Surrey the City of Champions by delivering: safe streets, fast commutes, smart investments, lower costs, and strong services.
Council candidates: Yousef Aldabainah-Barakat, Chandan Chahal, Perminder Chohan, Narima Dela Cruz, Ashiyana Hanif, William Li, Dr. Margaret Mubanda, and Kevin Wilkie.
Contact
Trevor Loke, Campaign Manager
604-838-5178
[email protected] / [email protected]