British Columbia’s River Forecast Centre has downgraded flood advisories across the province’s South Coast as a stretch of warm, wet weather eases.
The centre has lifted a flood warning for the Lillooet and Squamish rivers, saying flows remain high but the rainfall and snowmelt are tapering off.
The Village of Pemberton has rescinded evacuation alerts for several dozen properties whose residents had been told to leave on short notice as waters rose.
Environment Canada has also lifted a rainfall warning for the Howe Sound area, including Squamish.
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A flood watch remains in effect for the Sproat and Somass rivers on Vancouver Island, while lower-level streamflow advisories cover the rest of the South Coast.
Avalanche Canada, meanwhile, says conditions remain “very dangerous” in alpine areas throughout the Sea to Sky corridor, including mountains surrounding Whistler, Squamish and Pemberton.
“Hunting for dry snow in the alpine will put you closest to harm’s way,” says the latest bulletin posted by the agency for that region.
Environment Canada says another round of daily high-temperature records fell across southwestern B.C. on Wednesday, with West Vancouver reaching 17.9 C, almost three degrees higher than the previous Jan. 31 record set in 1993.
The River Forecast Centre says rain from the warm air system is expected to ease Friday, and cooler conditions should arrive by the weekend.
An earlier update from the centre said rainfall since last Friday ranged from 70 to more than 500 millimetres across the South Coast, while unseasonable warmth added between 75 and 150 millimetres of snowmelt earlier this week.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Feb. 1, 2024.
The Canadian Press
