VANCOUVER - Homeowners living along creeks and streams in southern B.C. are being warned to prepare now for what could be the next round of spring flooding.
Several days of cooler weather has helped stall flooding that caused some damage last week through the southern Okanagan and in the Kimberley area of southeastern B.C., but with a warm spell in the forecast, red flags are going up again.
North Okanagan emergency co-ordinator Brent Watson says residents of flood-prone areas in that region have a few days to set up sandbags and do other work to protect properties.
He's advising homeowners to have emergency supplies at the ready, in case the warmer weather expected this weekend unleashes torrents of water from snowpacks that remain as much as 150 per cent above normal on B.C. mountainsides.
The warning is not lost on Rossland resident Rob Wagner, who has been marooned on his Kootenay-area property since last Thursday when Sophie Creek cut off both roads to his home.
Elsewhere, residents of Tulameen, north of Princeton, remain on evacuation alert as Otter Lake has flooded dozens of homes in the tiny community, but evacuation orders and alerts for Kimberley and parts of the Southern Okanagan were dropped days ago. (CKQQ, CKIZ, Trail Times)
