Kamloops staff will be closing the three city-owned boat launches on Friday.

Utility services manager Greg Wightman tells NL News this is because of high waters and debris on the river.

Wightman acknowledges that some people might be on the rivers, if they take off from their own private boat launch.

“Definitely limiting your wake if you are out on the river. We don’t support anyone being out there, but if you are going to be out there, if you can limit your wake that will certainly help with the erosion of the riverbanks. And just know that it’s really dangerous to be out there right now. There’s a lot of debris, high water, and like I say, a lot of the rescue personnel that you may need to rely upon if you get in any trouble, they may not be able to reach you, just because they can’t pass under some of the bridges that are on the river.”

The City also had to close its boat launches in 2017 and 2018 because of high water during the spring snow melt.

Wightman says this morning, the city also closed the Rivers Trail from Riverside Park to Pioneer Park, saying the river have flooded onto parts of that section of the trail. This comes after the Rivers Trail through Riverside Park itself was closed yesterday.

At time of posting, the Thompson River west of the Overlanders Bridge was 6.813 metres high, according to real-time data from the federal government.

That’s more than 1.25 feet higher than Monday morning and nearly eight feet higher than three weeks ago, on May 6 (4.388m).

According to real-time data the Thompson River west of the Overlanders Bridge has risen by 1.11 feet in the past two days alone (now 6.745 metres high). And temperatures will be in the high-20s and low-30s starting today and lasting through the weekend. #Kamloops #floodwatch https://t.co/gckBUvgVN0

— Colton Davies (@ColtonDavies_) May 27, 2020