The B.C. River Forecast Centre is warning residents to stay away from potentially unstable riverbanks as the Cariboo region is under a high streamflow advisory Monday, Nov. 2.
Tributary rivers around Williams Lake, 100 Mile House, and Quesnel are all flowing unseasonally fast following a week of heavy rain.
“A heavy precipitation event last week impacted the region and is leading to a prolonged period of unseasonable flows,” states the advisory. “For most rivers in the region, flows are well outside the observed historic range of conditions for this time of year. Flows may remain high through the week, and while generally flows are expected to recede, there is the potential for additional rises in some rivers.”
Quesnel and Williams Lake both saw more than three times the typical amount of precipitation for the month of October, with 140.8 mm and 141 mm respectively. The 100 Mile House region saw less precipitation with 73 mm.
Lorne Doerkson, MLA-elect for Cariboo-Chilcotin, shared images of flooding near 150 Mile House on his Facebook page Friday, Oct. 30.
“Valley creek is flowing fast and hard and is filling fields along the way,” his post reads. “Be careful along these river banks as this water is moving fast. Let’s hope it stops raining and doesn’t warm up too much.”
Baker Creek reached a peak flow with 47 metres cubed per second of water flowing through the creek on Sunday, Nov. 1. It is now flowing at 38 metres cubed per second.
The River Forecast Centre will provide updates as flow rate changes.
READ MORE: Costs of responding to Baker Creek flooding continue to rise for City of Quesnel
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