City staff in Merritt are warning residents of an increased flood risk this week on the Nicola River.

That’s after significant rainfall happened on Monday and Tuesday; the BC River Forecast says between 15-25 millimetres of rain fell in the Nicola Valley over those two days.

Merritt director of corporate services Sean Smith says with a chance of rain continuing over the next two days, people are being encouraged to protect their properties from possible flooding.

“We don’t know exactly what that’s going to mean for the Nicola basin that feeds the Nicola Lake, perhaps we’ll get rain here but they won’t get rain there. But this, as it stands right now, it is cause for concern,” Smith says.

“And it’s wholly possible that we won’t see those flood level flows, but the only sensible course of action right now is to continue to make those preparations.”

Smith says the city has begun flood preparation at the Voght Street corner and other areas of concerns, to make sure public infrastructure is protected.

A high stream flow advisory remains in place for the upper Nicola River, which feeds into Nicola Lake. And a high streamflow advisory was issued earlier this week for the lower Nicola River, from Merritt to Spences Bridge.

Merritt experienced significant flooding in both 2018 and 2017 from the Nicola River overflowing.