Flood warnings issued for B.C. rivers amid heavy rain, melting snow
The BC River Forecast Centre has issued flood warnings for three rivers in the province's Southern Interior as an atmospheric river continues to bring heavy rain to much of B.C.
The Coquihalla, Tulameen and Coldwater rivers have all "risen rapidly" on Sunday, according to the forecast centre.
Flows on the Tulameen and Coldwater rivers have been observed at "between a 20-year and 50-year return period" at some monitoring stations, the centre said.
On the Coquihalla River, the volume has reached approximately a 10-year flow.
"Temperatures have been rising, with temperatures in the 5 to 7C range being observed at automated snow weather stations across the region," the centre said in its statement.
"Snowmelt is being observed at mid-elevations and is expected to add additional runoff to rivers."
Flood watches were already in place for the Fraser River and its tributaries in the Fraser Valley and Fraser Canyon regions, as well as for the Chilliwack River in the Fraser Valley and the Englishman River on Vancouver Island.
Flood watches are issued when "river levels are rising and will approach or may exceed bankfull," and flood warnings are issued when levels "have exceeded bankfull" or will do so "imminently."
"The public is advised to stay clear of the fast-flowing rivers and potentially unstable riverbanks during the high-streamflow period," the forecast centre said.
The centre said rivers are expected to continue rising through Sunday as a result of the continued rainfall, before easing on Monday as the heaviest rain passes.
Much of the Lower Mainland and the Southern Interior is under rainfall warnings Sunday. By the time the storm ends on Monday, rainfall totals are expected to range from 100 to 150 millimetres across different parts of the Fraser Valley, according to Environment Canada.
However, as the rain dissipates, the wind could pick up across the South Coast.
"We have winds coming down both the Juan de Fuca Strait and the Strait of Georgia," said Philippe-Alain Bergeron, an Environment Canada meteorologist. "We’ve got westerly winds anywhere from 40 to 60 kilometres an hour for (Monday) afternoon."
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Quebec nurse had to clean up after husband's death in Montreal hospital
On a night she should have been mourning, a nurse from Quebec's Laurentians region says she was forced to clean up her husband after he died at a hospital in Montreal.
'Anything to win': Trudeau says as Poilievre defends meeting protesters
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is accusing Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre of welcoming 'the support of conspiracy theorists and extremists,' after the Conservative leader was photographed meeting with protesters, which his office has defended.
'My stomach dropped': Winnipeg man speaks out after being criminally harassed following single online date
A Winnipeg man said a single date gone wrong led to years of criminal harassment, false arrests, stress and depression.
What is changing about Canada's capital gains tax and how does it impact me?
The federal government's proposed change to capital gains taxation is expected to increase taxes on investments and mainly affect wealthy Canadians and businesses. Here's what you need to know about the move.
Bank of Canada officials split on when to start cutting interest rates
Members of the Bank of Canada's governing council were split on how long the central bank should wait before it starts cutting interest rates when they met earlier this month.
Pilot reported fire onboard plane carrying fuel, attempted to return to Fairbanks just before crash
One of the two pilots aboard an airplane carrying fuel reported there was a fire on the airplane shortly before it crashed and burned outside Fairbanks, killing both people on board, a federal aviation official said Wednesday.
Police tangle with students in Texas and California as wave of campus protest against Gaza war grows
Police tangled with student demonstrators in Texas and California while new encampments sprouted Wednesday at Harvard and other colleges as school leaders sought ways to defuse a growing wave of pro-Palestinian protests.
'One of the single most terrifying things ever': Ontario couple among passengers on sinking tour boat in Dominican Republic
A Toronto couple are speaking out about their 'extremely dangerous' experience on board a sinking tour boat in the Dominican Republic last week.
7 surveillance videos linked to extortions of South Asian home builders in Edmonton released
The Edmonton Police Service has released a number of surveillance videos related to a series of extortion cases in the city now dubbed 'Project Gaslight.'