Atmospheric river brings heavy rains, localized flooding on B.C. election day
An atmospheric river has drenched coastal British Columbia, triggering localized flooding Saturday as voters headed to the polls for the provincial election.
Photos and videos posted to social media showed brown floodwaters rushing over streets throughout Metro Vancouver, including West Vancouver, the North Vancouver community of Deep Cove, Surrey, Burnaby, and Port Coquitlam.
Mike Little, the mayor of the District of North Vancouver, said on Saturday that crews had been bracing for rain, working to clear leaves and debris from culverts and storm drains, but the intensity of the weather system caught officials by surprise.
“I think we were originally talking about it being about 130 millimetres, and I think by lunchtime, we had already received 185 millimetres throughout the course of the storm,” he said. “It was definitely much more intense than we originally anticipated.”
About two dozen homes in high-risk areas have been evacuated, Little said, but the mayor was not aware of any injuries resulting from the flooding.
He said the rain was expected to ease overnight, giving crews an opportunity to catch up on clearing drainage channels, but more downpours are expected Sunday.
Little said officials are asking residents to be “extra careful” around waterways.
Lisa Muri, a councillor with the district, said “many” homes and basements were flooded as debris blocked culverts and drains that had since been cleared.
Muri said Saturday’s flooding was “very sobering.”
Related: Flood of atmospheric rivers in B.C. cost $675 million in insured damage: CatIQ
The Metro Vancouver Regional District issued an advisory Saturday saying “extreme rainfall” on the steep, mountainous terrain above the Coquitlam reservoir was causing turbidity in the drinking water for eastern parts of the region.
The statement said the district had increased levels of treatment and disinfection as a safety precaution, and the medical health officer for the region was “confident the water remains safe to drink despite its cloudy appearance.”
A flood warning was in effect for the Coquitlam River as well as waterways on the west coast of Vancouver Island, while B.C.’s River Forecast Centre maintained lower-level flood watches for the rest of the province’s south and central coasts.
In West Vancouver, police posted a video on social media showing a surge of brown floodwater flowing down a sloping city street on Saturday.
In the Metro Vancouver community of Langley, RCMP issued a warning about a possible sinkhole, saying heavy rain had compromised a roadway’s stability.
Mounties also issued an advisory about a mudslide with debris and fast-moving water that has forced the closure of a road on the outskirts of Coquitlam.
The BC Hydro outage map showed downed lines, trees and other weather-related challenges knocked out power for several thousand customers across the Lower Mainland, Sunshine Coast and central Interior throughout much of the day, along with about 500 on Vancouver Island. The numbers dropped later Saturday as the Crown utility worked to repair the damage and restore power.
Two voting sites in the Cariboo-Chilcotin and one in Maple Ridge were closed early due to power outages.
A handful of voting sites in Kamloops, Port Moody and Langley, as well as on Hornby, Denman and Mayne islands, were temporarily closed Saturday due to outages.
All had reopened by midday, though Elections BC said Alexander Robinson Elementary School in Maple Ridge East, remained closed later Saturday.
BC Ferries had warned that high winds could affect service on routes along the northern Georgia Strait and northern Vancouver Island, while DriveBC reported a number of highway and road closures due to washouts or flooding.
Feature image: B.C. NDP Leader David Eby shields himself from the rain with an umbrella while speaking during a campaign stop in Coquitlam, B.C., on Friday, October 18, 2024. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Darryl Dyck
