By Arpandeep Kaur
British Columbia is expected to be hit by another atmospheric river, this time along the North Coast. As the province suffers devastation caused by the last weekend’s storm, which was also the atmospheric river – across southern B.C., the provincial government is warning the residents to get ready for strong winds and heavy rain.
Environment Canada warned of hazardous winter conditions Sunday morning, including heavy snow in inland sections of the region. As of Monday, six B.C. communities are under a snowfall warning, including the Fraser Valley, which saw thousands of residents evacuated last week. The Coquihalla Highway which has had sections blocked by mudslides, is expected to see 25 to 30 cms of snow from Monday afternoon to Tuesday. The region is under rainfall, wind and winter storm warnings and could see up to 90 millimeters of precipitation.
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As the temperature rises the snow is expected to change to heavy rain. This means that in addition to the precipitation, flooding is possible due to he melting snowpack. Meteorologists have warned of landslides especially in the Stewart area where there have been several heavy snowfalls already this year. According to Environment Canada, 20 to 30 centimeters has already fallen since Saturday, and another two to four centimeters were expected Sunday, before strong, warm winds from the south begin to melt that snow.
The “Atmospheric river” will dump up to 100 millimeters of rain on some spots, flash flooding and water pooling is possible, along with localized flooding in lower-lying areas, the warning says. In a period of about a week, this atmospheric river is second such event to hit B.C. Further south, a similar storm last weekend, left parts of province’s southern half underwater and major routes buried in mud. At least four people have died in one of the multiple landslides that were caused as a result of storm.
Additionally, the province’s deputy premier said on Saturday that Environment Canada is working on a new ranking system for the weather pattern, which will help the public know what to expect of the phenomenon making recent headlines. An update is expected from the officials till Monday afternoon.
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