Merritt RCMP officers are urging people to try and get in touch with friends and family who live in the community, after the city was ordered to evacuate Monday.

Sergeant Josh Roda is also asking people who have left the Merritt area to reach out to friends and family to let them know they are safe.

He tells NL News that police have already gotten reports of missing people.

“The biggest thing is for anybody that is evacuated to make sure that they’ve touched base with family. We just don’t want to get inundated with calls to check on loved ones if we don’t have to be,” he said, noting officers will check on people, if needed.

“Our time is very valuable in these type of situations, so the more checks that people can do to get a hold of their family members before they call the police, the better.”

This morning, Merritt City staff said they expect the evacuation order to remain in place for more than a week. Roda notes officers have been called to rescue some people who were trapped in their homes, though he did not have an estimate on how many people chose to stay behind.

“I think people just didn’t understand the gravity maybe of what was happening and it happened very quickly. They need to understand the fact that we have no sewer or water here,” he said.

“It has been very difficult for our officers and we are just trying to find ways around that by getting porta potties and bottled water in here so that we can stay boots on the ground to look after the community.”

Roda says the RCMP is at full capacity in Merritt, noting officers will be working around the clock to ensure that people and their properties and safe and secure.