B.C. Flooding: Evacuation alert issued for dozens of homes in Upper Fraser Valley

About 40 homes in the Upper Fraser Valley were under evacuation alert Saturday as flooding concerns spread across much of B.C.

The alert was issued by the District of Kent for properties in the area of Harrison Mills, along the Harrison River. Residents were being warned to prepare in case an evacuation order was issued.

On Saturday, fill-your-own sandbags were available to residents at the corner of Morris Valley Road and Chehalis Forest Service Road east of Sasquatch Inn.

The alert comes as officials continue to monitor rising water levels in the Fraser River. Dave Campbell with B.C.s River Forecast Centre said low-lying areas that are not protected by dyke infrastructure could start seeing flooding in the coming days.

“Certainly in the short term we’re seeing, what I call modest increases in the rise, so it is steadily coming up but it's not big jumps,” Campbell said Saturday.

Streamflow warnings were also issued through the Kootenays on Saturday. Campbell said his centre is monitoring a “weather event” around the Rockies.

“We’ve been tracking it for a number of days now,” he said. “Right now it’s looking like a bullseye on the Alberta side but that’s going to bring some rainfall into the southeast corner of B.C., throughout the Kootenays.”

In the Interior, a flood watch has been issued for the North Thompson River including tributaries around Barriere and Clearwater.

Meantime, a high streamflow advisory and flood warning issued earlier this week for northern British Columbia remains in effect. The warning for the Liard River in the northeastern area of the province, initially issued Tuesday, includes tributaries around Fort Nelson and Highway 97 towards Watson Lake. The centre says it is also maintaining a high streamflow advisory for Swift River and other streams and rivers in the most northwestern section of the province.

The elevated risk of flooding for many in parts of B.C. comes after a cool, wet spring leaving rivers and streams at peak levels and an above-average snowpack that hasn’t significantly melted.

With files from The Canadian Press