(District of Clearwater Facebook Page)
Preparations are underway in Clearwater for potentially bad flooding.
The District of Clearwater’s Emergency Operations Center has been activated, due to a weekend rise in water levels in the area.
“Due to the continued rise in water levels of the river systems, the District is upgrading from a High Stream Flow Advisory to a Flood Watch,” said the District of Clearwater in a notification to residents. “This means that we expect some exceedance of the banks in some areas in the near future.”
“If you reside or possess property in an area that is likely to be impacted by flooding, this is the time to prepare including reviewing individual or family emergency plans,” the notification continues.
Clearwater’s mayor, Merlin Blackwell, says people in his community should take note of the situation.
“I’m not deeply concerned yet… seen water 2-3 feet higher,” Blackwell told NL News on Sunday. “But if it keeps raining and the snowmelt suddenly speeds up we could have some issues.”
https://twitter.com/BlackwellMerlin/status/1536015373366988800
The forecast from Environment Canada does suggest the Clearwater area may be in for more rain in the coming days.
(Clearwater Forecast/Environment Canada, Sunday, 11:30am)
The upgrade to a flood watch comes after the BC River Forecast Center upgraded the region from a high streamflow advisory to a flood watch on Saturday.
“Rainfall and snowmelt across the region has led to on-going rises in rivers draining from the Cariboo Mountains over the past week,” the River Forecast Center said in its notification on Saturday. “More unsettled weather is in the forecast into next week and may lead to additional rises in river levels at that time.”
