Friday, June 26, 2026
    ADVT 
    National

    Rain, Melting Snow Pose Flooding Concerns Across B.C. As Evacuations Lift

    Darpan News Desk The Canadian Press, 23 May, 2018 11:30 AM
      Many people forced from their homes by flooding in southern British Columbia have been allowed to return, but officials say there are still areas of concern in many parts of the province.
       
       
      Evacuation orders for about 171 addresses in Grand Forks were lifted Tuesday, with the Regional District of Kootenay Boundary saying the threat of flooding had decreased.
       
       
      Residents of more than 500 properties across the province remained out of their home, and another 6,500 were on evacuation alert, warned that they may need to leave at a moment's notice.
       
       
      The Regional District of Okanagan-Similkameen said drones were used to re-evaluate its evacuation alerts and orders. Residents would be allowed to return to their homes "as soon as the situation is appropriate," the regional district said.
       
       
      Farmers and ranchers have been hit hard by the rising waters, said Agriculture Minister Lana Popham. Cows were removed from two dairy farms on an island in the Fraser River near Surrey, she said.  
       
       
      "The flooding is taking a toll on farming and ranching families again," Popham said, adding many agriculture operations were also affected by last summer's historic wildfire season.
       
       
      Temperatures have been unseasonably high across much of the province in recent weeks, melting snow faster than waterways can cope with it, said David Campbell of the River Forecast Centre.
       
       
      "We, not surprisingly, have seen ongoing, dramatic, rapid snowmelt across the province over the last few weeks," he said.
       
       
      Enough snow has melted to reduce the risk for many areas that have seen significant flooding, Campbell said, but large melting snowpacks could still overwhelm the Thompson and Fraser rivers, and waterways in the Kootenay region.
       
       
      Severe rainfall is also a concern, he added, because June is known to bring wet weather across the province.
       
       
      "It's difficult, really, to kind of stand down from the seasonal risk until we're well past those weather risks," he said.
       
       
      Chris Duffy of Emergency Management BC said there are still about 300 Canadian Forces personnel and about 380 wildfire crews helping with the flood response.
      Prev Next

      MORE National ARTICLES

      Suspect Sought In Kamloops, B.C., After Street Fight Turns Deadly

      KAMLOOPS, B.C. — An early morning street fight in Kamloops, B.C., has left a 42-year-old man dead.

      Suspect Sought In Kamloops, B.C., After Street Fight Turns Deadly

      Entangled Deer Gets Helping Hand From B.C. Mountie

      Entangled Deer Gets Helping Hand From B.C. Mountie
      A British Columbia Mountie who usually handles dogs, found himself wrangling a deer this week.

      Entangled Deer Gets Helping Hand From B.C. Mountie

      Drug Thought To Be Fentanyl Was More Deadly Carfentanil, Hamilton Police Say

      Drug Thought To Be Fentanyl Was More Deadly Carfentanil, Hamilton Police Say
      Officers seized the drug on Nov. 5 after the person who had the bottle turned it over to police, saying they were aware of the dangers of liquid fentanyl.

      Drug Thought To Be Fentanyl Was More Deadly Carfentanil, Hamilton Police Say

      Nova Scotia's Annapolis Valley Senior Hiker Allegedly Sexually Assaulted By Teen On Public Trail

      KINGSTON, N.S. — A 14-year-old boy has been charged with sexually assaulting an 80-year-old woman while she was walking on a public trail in Nova Scotia's Annapolis Valley. 

      Nova Scotia's Annapolis Valley Senior Hiker Allegedly Sexually Assaulted By Teen On Public Trail

      Marmora, Ont., Man Found Guilty Of Cruelty To A Squirrel, Fined $1,000

       A 34-year-old Marmora, Ont., man has been found guilty of animal cruelty after leaving a squirrel in a cage under the hot sun this past summer.

      Marmora, Ont., Man Found Guilty Of Cruelty To A Squirrel, Fined $1,000

      'We Are Not Going To Be Silent': Canadian Women Join March On Washington, D.C.

      'We Are Not Going To Be Silent': Canadian Women Join March On Washington, D.C.
      Before this year's American election, Tina Woodland had never protested anything in her life. But when she heard that thousands of women were planning to march on the U.S. capital the day after Donald Trump's inauguration, the Yukon resident knew she had to join in.

      'We Are Not Going To Be Silent': Canadian Women Join March On Washington, D.C.

      PrevNext