By Vanessa Ybarra

Rising temperatures increase Barnhartvale residents flood fears

May 4, 2017 | 4:47 PM

KAMLOOPS — As temperatures continue to rise throughout the city, so does the speed of the snowpack melt.

With water levels in Campbell Creek continuing to rise, Barnhartvale residents are sandbagging around-the-clock to try and protect their home from water damage.

With the warmer weather expected to continue through to next week, homeowner stress is at an all-time high.

“The water is rising under the bridge, this morning it was about 12 inches from the lowest point under the bridge,” said Barnhartvale Resident Roman Gehring. “If it all fills up, it will start backing up here and we want to try and keep the water out.”

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With Campbell Creek water levels rising an average four to six centimetres each night, the Gehrings are one of dozens of Barnhartvale residents spending countless hours filling up sandbags supplied by the city to protect their home.

“They’ve been very cooperative about bringing sand and bags. We appreciate it very much, they’ve been checking on us daily.”

While melting snowpacks typically cause creek levels to rise every spring, this year has been one of the worst.

Katherine Roberts is checking on her daughters home that sits mere meters from the creek.

“The biggest concern is the water rising high enough to come over into the yard and into the basement,” said Roberts.

With hundreds of sandbags packed and piled, all she can do now is wait.

“I’m on flood watch while my daughter and son are at work so I’ll notify them if there are any concerns,” added Robertson.

One of the main concerns plaguing Barnhartvale residents is rising temperatures.

With temperatures expected to stay in the late teens to mid-twenties for the next week, the situation is bound to get worse before it gets better.

On Thursday the river forecast centre issued a high flow river warning.

The city says it’s doing the best they can given the situation.

“We’ve provided over 6,000 sandbags to the residents out there and all the sand they need,” said City of Kamloops Utilities Manager Greg Wightman. “Beyond that, it’s just a monitoring event right now. That’s all we can do unfortunately.”

For those living further upstream, the spring melt still has a way to go.

“I would guess maybe another one to two feet maybe,” said one Barnhartvale man. “I’m trying to be cautiously optimistic.”

For others, faith remains the best line of defence.

“We do as much as we can,” added Gehring. “The rest we leave up to God.”