Image Credit: CFJC Today

By Adam Donnelly

RIVER LEVEL UPDATE

With freshet on the way, City of Kamloops plans to monitor smaller streams throughout community

Apr 27, 2023 | 11:34 AM

KAMLOOPS — On Wednesday (April 25), the B.C. River Forecast Centre issued a high streamflow advisory for several areas around Kamloops.

With a warm stretch of weather forecast over the weekend, the City of Kamloops will keep a close eye on streams around the community.

The cool, dry weather we’ve experienced so far this spring means much of the snowpack remains in the hills and mountains around the region.

Temperatures are expected to reach the mid-20s this weekend, which means the remaining snow at mid-elevations could melt quickly.

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“Fortunately, with those low river levels in the major streams, we’ve got a lot of capacity,” Wightman explains. “Not a ton of concern this weekend for the larger rivers. The smaller streams are the ones that are going to respond quickly to the warmer weather. With the high pressure ridge possibly breaking down Monday or Tuesday, and some rain falling with 24- or 25-degree weather, we’ll have to be cognizant and aware of the smaller streams.”

The city is able to monitor many of the smaller streams remotely from the Civic Operations Centre, which means staff will be watching closely over the weekend.

Image Credit: CFJC Today

The province’s advisory includes areas around Kamloops — however, Wightman is confident the major streams in the city will be able to handle that extra water.

“That’s kind of the first of three warnings that can come from the River Forecast Centre. It heightens our sense of alert and kind of puts us on notice that there’s a possibility of rivers beginning to rise rapidly,” Wightman says. “At this stage, we’re not increasing our staffing levels over the weekend — we’re in a normal response mode — but it is an indication to the public that we have to start looking for anything that is out of the norm, and please report that to Civic Operations so we can investigate.”