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The latest atmospheric river has put some B.C. residents on edge on Monday.
Emergency Management Cowichan issued an evacuation order for 10 properties in the area of Chemainus Road, Swallowfield Road and Crofton Road due to the risk of imminent flooding from the Chemainus River.
Chemainus Road is closed in both directions at the bridge. A detour is available via Highway 1.
The Regional District of Nanaimo issued an evacuation alert for various properties in Electoral Area G near Parksville due to flooding of the Englishman River.
In addition, the Fraser Valley Regional District has issued an evacuation alert for Electoral Area E lands along the Chilliwack River due to risk of flooding. Anyone in the impacted area must be ready to leave on short notice.
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“You never really do know what the mountain’s going to do, so there’s a chance that things could come down, there’s a chance the river could get bigger, so people need to be prepared,” Greg Fawcett with Kemano Construction told Global News.
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Construction crews have been working in Chilliwack to widen the roadway to prevent the rapidly-rising Tamihi Creek from spilling over.
This same area was recently hit hard by the atmospheric river in December and residents are nervously watching the weather.
The River Forecast Centre has also issued a flood watch for the Fraser Valley.
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“I think it’s a bit more of a cautious wait and see at this point, but our modelling and sort of the rainfall projections do have us in that potential to get up into potentially into the flood stage side of things later today,” David Campbell with the B.C. River Forecast Centre said.
Ken Dosanjh, a meteorologist with Environment Canada, said everyone should stay away from riverbanks during this wet weather.
“Don’t drive through any flooded roads and washouts and always be sure to check the road conditions on drivebc.com,” he said.
Environment Canada has issued a rainfall warning for the Fraser Valley, much of Metro Vancouver, and some parts of Vancouver Island.
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Pooling water, also a possibility for drivers, and the threat of a landslide is also possible in some vulnerable areas, especially those with steep slopes and stability issues.
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