Well, my experience is that anything given to you verbally is worth the paper on which it is written - in other words, it's far too easily disavowed after the fact.
Have you at least spoken with an immigration attorney? Since you were filing a PRRA, I assume you were here on a refugee/protected person claim, and usually there is assistance available for someone in that situation. But if not, even a consultation with an immigration attorney may provide you with options that are not apparent to me. Hopefully someone else will step in and suggest something else for you as well.
Well, you do have 30 days before the departure order becomes a deportation order. If you have an LMO you can just go to a POE and get a new work permit. You could, literally, execute the departure order (so you turn it into CBSA showing you have left voluntarily) and then turn around and apply for your work permit - you obeyed the departure order, and you get your work permit. This is known as "flag poling". But to do this successfully YOU would have to be able to legally enter the US - you cannot be refused entry into the US or Canada will not consider your departure order to have been fulfilled. You could enter for 30 seconds and then turn around (get a stamp in your passport!)
If you have friends or family in the US, you could just go there and wait for the LMO. Or if you have AIP (and that invaluable open work permit) you could re-enter on that basis. An in-process inland application isn't abandoned simply because you are temporarily absent from the country, either. There are lots of variables here and I'm sure I don't fully appreciate what you've had to undergo thus far.
If you have not reviewed the enforcement manuals, I would suggest that you do so. ENF 10 describes removals (including the departure order I assume you received). There are options for delaying, including appeals and Federal Court of Canada orders (e.g., if you are challenging the legal basis of the rejection and departure order).
I'd really suggest talking to an attorney.