B.C. state of emergency 2021

[Warhippy]

For those of us in the interior or travelling in to the interior.

 

Highway 3/Hope Princeton is your only way in and it was washed out again due to another slide.  It is moving single lane apparently but take your time today and plan for a long trip

 

https://www.drivebc.ca/mobile/pub/events/Highway3.html

[CBH1926]

I see that 30 liters limit is working well in B.C.

 

Edited November 25, 2021 by CBH1926

[Warhippy]

1 minute ago, CBH1926 said:

I see that 30 liters limit is working well in B.C.

 

Where is this ?  I wanna follow him home and get some for my friends

[CBH1926]

Fuel shortage is about to get worse.

https://vancouversun.com/business/refinery-that-supplies-estimated-one-third-of-lower-mainland-gas-runs-out-of-crude-oil

[StanleyCupOneDay]

19 hours ago, CBH1926 said:

I see that 30 liters limit is working well in B.C.

 

I’m not going to judge. They could easily be picking up fuel for people who were unable to afford it/unable to drive there themselves or maybe are volunteers in taking supplies to those in need or maybe are purchasing fuel for all the construction vehicles needing to be used to reconnect communities or maybe for rescue vehicles to help with recovery and future actions. We don’t know the reason these people aren’t following the restrictions. There’s also a lot of people having to travel a lot of miles because of this disaster. It’s easy to jump to conclusions here given the seriousness and scale of the crisis in our province, but let’s also remember most people are good and try to give them the benefit of the doubt.

Edited November 25, 2021 by StanleyCupOneDay

[Sean Monahan]

40 minutes ago, StanleyCupOneDay said:

I’m not going to judge. They could easily be picking up fuel for people who were unable to afford it/unable to drive there themselves or maybe are volunteers in taking supplies to those in need or maybe are purchasing fuel for all the construction vehicles needing to be used to reconnect communities or maybe for rescue vehicles to help with recovery and future actions. We don’t know the reason these people aren’t following the restrictions. There’s also a lot of people having to travel a lot of miles because of this disaster. It’s easy to jump to conclusions here given the seriousness and scale of the crisis in our province, but let’s also remember most people are good and try to give them the benefit of the doubt.

I’ve seen quite a few people filling jerry cans though. They can’t all be exempt from the restriction through work or have legitimate excuses to be doing it. 
 

I’m 30KM from empty right now, enough to get me home from work today but not back in tomorrow. If I can’t find gas after work today (haven’t had luck so far) I’m gonna be SOL. 

[Gurn]

https://www.msn.com/en-ca/news/weather/flooding-fears-hit-northwest-due-to-atmospheric-river/ar-AARaQeM?ocid=msedgdhp&pc=U531

BELLINGHAM, Wash. (AP) — Flood watches were issued for much of western Washington as storms associated with multiple “atmospheric rivers” threaten parts of the Northwest that saw heavy damage from extreme weather earlier this month.

 

The National Weather Service warned that flooding was possible through Monday afternoon in places like Bellingham and the greater Seattle area. Heavy rains and rising rivers were expected over the weekend in the Cascade and Olympic mountains.

The moisture is from atmospheric rivers — huge plumes of moisture extending over the Pacific and into the Northwest — and could bring up to 3 inches (7.6 centimeters) of rain in some areas hit by the recent flooding, forecasters said.

The state is still assessing millions of dollars in damage from the last atmospheric rivers.

In northwest Washington’s Whatcom County, officials said damage costs could reach as high as $50 million.

During that time the U.S.-Canada border closed in the small city of Sumas, three bridges in Bellingham were closed and landslides blocked Interstate 5 south of Bellingham.

[PhillipBlunt]

On 11/25/2021 at 1:55 PM, StanleyCupOneDay said:

I’m not going to judge. They could easily be picking up fuel for people who were unable to afford it/unable to drive there themselves or maybe are volunteers in taking supplies to those in need or maybe are purchasing fuel for all the construction vehicles needing to be used to reconnect communities or maybe for rescue vehicles to help with recovery and future actions. We don’t know the reason these people aren’t following the restrictions. There’s also a lot of people having to travel a lot of miles because of this disaster. It’s easy to jump to conclusions here given the seriousness and scale of the crisis in our province, but let’s also remember most people are good and try to give them the benefit of the doubt.

Based on?

[Gurn]

A bit of good news and good deeds in this time of devastation;

https://www.msn.com/en-ca/news/canada/flood-stranded-sturgeon-pushed-pulled-and-carried-back-to-the-fraser-river/ar-AARcBSr?ocid=msedgdhp&pc=U531

A flood-stranded sturgeon is now back in the comfortable confines of the main stem of the Fraser River thanks to the volunteer efforts and cardiovascular capacity of two angling guides, who pushed, pulled and carried the giant fish two kilometres to deep water.

The sturgeon was discovered by a helicopter crew flying near British Columbia's Herrling Island, between Hope and Agassiz, on Thursday.

Video sent to the Fraser Valley Angling Guides Association (FVAGA) shows it struggling in an isolated and shallow pool left behind by receding floodwaters from recent catastrophic rains in B.C.

After seeing the video, the FVAGA jumped into action, dispatching two professional sturgeon guides — Tyler Buck and Jay Gibson — on a catch-and-release mission like no other.

"They were actually upriver doing debris collection and picking up garbage ... when the call came in," said Kevin Estrada, FVAGA director. "They were obviously very happy they could help out in any way."

A short video posted by the FVAGA shows Buck and Gibson slogging through thigh-high brown water — one at the head of a custom cradle holding the giant fish, the other at the tail.

"We're at about a kilometre and a half right now," Gibson says, between gulps of air.  "Half a [kilometre] to go to get to the river."

What the video doesn't show are the three overland portages where the men had to carry the two-metre-long, nearly 100-kilogram sturgeon to get to its final deep-water destination.

Estrada said the fish was in good condition when it was released back into the main stem of the Fraser.

"It swam away very strong and healthy. And I'm sure one day down the road, they will see that fish again at some point," he said. "Sturgeon are very resilient, right? They survived three ice ages and they're very hardy fish."

The Fraser River sturgeon fishery is strictly catch-and-release. The species is prehistoric and can be traced back 65 million years.

Fraser River white sturgeon are the largest and longest-living species of freshwater fish in North America, according to the Fraser River Sturgeon Conservation Society, and can live 150 years and grow to six metres and 600 kilograms.

However, the species is considered endangered and its numbers are in decline.

The non-profit Fraser River Angling Guides Association has been running upward of 15 volunteer boats a day along the river since the flood devastation of two weeks ago, bringing people, pets and livestock to safety and delivering food, medicine and other supplies to residents cut off from services.

Estrada says the high water levels mean there's bound to be a lot of displaced fish, including salmon. And although this was the first sturgeon rescue, there's likely to be more.

"We're going to find fish that are in a farmer's field. We're going to find fish, once the water drops, in a lot of areas that they aren't normally in," he said.

"Thankfully, it's only one. But we're going to have to keep our eyes open for more sturgeon recoveries as the water drops."

 

[Gurn]

Highways temporarily closed due to this newest rainfall, a preventative measure.

https://www.msn.com/en-ca/news/canada/b-c-closing-highways-as-downpour-begins-in-latest-storm-striking-southern-region/ar-AARcDa9?ocid=UCPNC1&bncnt=BroadcastNews_TopStories&pc=U531

 

VICTORIA — British Columbia's Transportation Ministry proactively closed several highways on Saturday as another storm hammered the already saturated south coast. 

The closures apply to highways between the Lower Mainland and Interior that were previously affected by major flooding and were only open to essential traffic as the province worked to restore damaged infrastructure and manage a gas shortage caused by the disaster.

Highway 3 between Hope and Princeton, Highway 1 between Hope and Popkum and Highway 1 in the Fraser Canyon will be closed at 2 p.m. Highway 99 between Pemberton and Lillooet will be closed at 4 p.m., the province said. 

"The highway infrastructure in these areas is extremely vulnerable following recent storm events. More heavy rain in the forecast poses an additional risk," the Ministry said in a statement.

The duration of closures will depend on the weather and the closures will be re-evaluated Sunday morning, it said. 

Rainfall warnings blanketed the Lower Mainland, the central coast and parts of Vancouver Island Saturday, with downpours beginning as part of the second in a set of three storms forecasted for the region.

Environment Canada is warning that up to 120mm of rain could fall on mountainous regions like Squamish by Sunday afternoon, while other regions struggling to recover from recent floods also braced for more rain. 

The agency issued a special weather alert covering Metro Vancouver, the Fraser Valley, the Sunshine Coast and parts of Vancouver Island. Environment Canada said the rains would intensify Saturday night, ease Sunday afternoon and return again early next week. 

The centre that monitor's the province's waterways upgraded it's advisory Saturday for parts of Vancouver Island to a flood watch, meaning rising rivers may spill out of the channels and flood nearby areas. 

The River Forecast Centre's flood watch applies south of Campbell River and Gold River, with the heaviest rainfall expected around Port Renfrew through to Cowichan Lake and the Sooke River watershed. 

The centre further warned that the potential for flood flows extend onto the eastern slopes of Vancouver Island, including the Koksilah, Chemainus, Cowichan and Englishman rivers and surrounding areas. 

"The public is advised to stay clear of the fast-flowing rivers and potentially unstable riverbanks during the high-streamflow period," the centre says in a statement.

Flood watches are already in place for much of the Lower Mainland, and the centre added new high streamflow advisories for parts of the Interior around the Tulameen, Similkameen, Coldwater and Nicola rivers. 

"Flooding last week has created increased vulnerabilities throughout the region and forecast flows, leading to increased risks to impacts," it said. 

In addition to weather concerns, the province said the closure of Highway 1 between Popkum and Hope is necessary due to reservoir releases by BC Hydro. It said the move is crucial to protect the Jones Lake Reservoir, which is also being affected by heavy rain.

BC Hydro said in a video statement that it's working with the Ministry to monitor the reservoir and is prepared to release water to prevent overflows. 

Crews are on standby across the province should the storms cause power outages, it added. 

On Friday, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Premier John Horgan held a press conference announcing a joint committee of cabinet ministers to deal with the devastation caused by flooding. 

Trudeau said the committee would be used to establish a model for the rest of Canada as it deals with the effects of climate change. 

The federal and provincial governments both also pledged to match donations for flood relief that are given to the Red Cross. 

— By Amy Smart in Vancouver. 

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 27, 2021.

The Canadian Press

 

 

 

[Warhippy]

How are things on the coast?

 

Hearing it didn't rain nearly as bad as predicted

[Sean Monahan]

6 minutes ago, Warhippy said:

How are things on the coast?

 

Hearing it didn't rain nearly as bad as predicted

I’m not sure how it compares to the predictions, but we’ve had pretty solid rain all day since mid morning in Langley. On the short walks I’ve taken my dog on the water pooling I saw wasn’t bad yet. 

[Tortorella's Rant]

Interesting driving the freeway today. It's mostly fine until No3 road - you go from small pooling to having a lake all around you. 

[StanleyCupOneDay]

1 hour ago, Warhippy said:

How are things on the coast?

 

Hearing it didn't rain nearly as bad as predicted

The coast usually has easy runoff options for rainfall so flooding rarely gets bad. It’s the mountains and small towns where water literally has nowhere to go that get it bad. Rivers and creeks aren’t fast or big enough of an outlet for the large amount of water to release so they will rise and overflow their banks. Whereas near the ocean there’s a large number of avenues for water to flow and that leads to mostly little damage from flooding.

[4petesake]

1 hour ago, Warhippy said:

How are things on the coast?

 

Hearing it didn't rain nearly as bad as predicted

Everything is lit up tonight along the border as Canadian Armed Forces personnel and volunteers are scrambling to fill sandbags around the railway dykes in Huntington, where people are on evacuation alert again. The Nooksack River in Washington is expected to overflow the banks again on Sunday so tensions are pretty high out on the Sumas flats right now. It’s raining fairly heavily in Abbotsford right now.

[johngould21]

3 hours ago, Warhippy said:

How are things on the coast?

 

Hearing it didn't rain nearly as bad as predicted

Steady rain since 7am, heavy at times, and it doesn't seem to want to let up.

[Gurn]

18 minutes ago, johngould21 said:

Steady rain since 7am, heavy at times, and it doesn't seem to want to let up.

Another 2 hrs of rain warning for Abbottsford

https://www.msn.com/en-ca/weather/maps?lat=49.063&lon=-122.251&ocid=ansmsnweather&weaext0={"l"%3A"Abbotsford"%2C"r"%3A"BC"%2C"r2"%3A"Fraser+Valley"%2C"c"%3A"Canada"%2C"i"%3A"CA"%2C"g"%3A"en-ca"}&type=precipitation&city=Abbotsford%2C+BC&zoom=8

[-DLC-]

IMPORTANT UPDATE/NEW EVACUATION ORDER

 

Huntingdon Village in Abbotsford has been issued an evacuation order as of 3:30 am.  Waters are spilling over from Whatcom County although, as of 4:30 am, they believe it's rainwater accumulating and not another breach of the Nooksack.  Today is pivotal, they'll know in a few hours what will happen.  The Sumas pump station and floodgates being open will determine how they handle the water coming straight in.  If those pumps fail the lake will fill (to 12') with water and the highway will be 8' under water and take about a year to pump out!   It's very much a nervous time right now out there...my thoughts are with everyone...be safe!

 

NOVEMBER 28 UPDATE:

An Evacuation Order has been issued for the Huntingdon Village area. Residents must leave the area immediately. The following areas are included:

• North Boundary: All of 2nd Avenue
• South Boundary: USA Border 
• West Boundary: Sumas Way 
• East Boundary: 2nd Avenue to Southern Rail (including the Glass Plant) 

 

 

[johngould21]

8 hours ago, gurn said:

Another 2 hrs of rain warning for Abbottsford

https://www.msn.com/en-ca/weather/maps?lat=49.063&lon=-122.251&ocid=ansmsnweather&weaext0={"l"%3A"Abbotsford"%2C"r"%3A"BC"%2C"r2"%3A"Fraser+Valley"%2C"c"%3A"Canada"%2C"i"%3A"CA"%2C"g"%3A"en-ca"}&type=precipitation&city=Abbotsford%2C+BC&zoom=8

Are you on evacuation alert?

 

[-DLC-]