Flood watch for southwest B.C. as rain batters region on Saturday

Rainfall warnings and flood watches were issued in Vancouver and southwest B.C., as heavy rain in the region follows a week of snowstorms.

A significant winter storm swept through the region on Friday, leading to hundreds of flight cancellations and the closure of crucial arterial bridges in Metro Vancouver, as well as ferry suspensions and avalanche risk elsewhere in the province.

Most flights and ferries resumed service on Saturday, although some delays have been reported according to Vancouver airport officials and B.C. Ferries. 

However, there are now rainfall warnings for most of Vancouver Island, Metro Vancouver and the Fraser Valley. And the provincial River Forecast Centre issued a flood watch for the Lower Mainland and Central, West, and South Vancouver Island including Victoria on Saturday.

"Heavy warmer rain falling on the snowpacks may cause large volumes of snowmelt, which would induce extra flooding risks to the stream systems" on Vancouver Island, according to the flood watch advisory. "The public is advised to stay clear of the fast-flowing rivers and potentially unstable riverbanks during the high-streamflow period.

"Low-lying flooding is expected and may extend to overbank flooding of floodplains in areas."

A flood watch follows a high streamflow advisory, under the centre's three-tiered warning system, and indicates river levels may exceed the banks causing flooding.

High streamflow advisories cover the rest of Vancouver Island and the Lower Mainland, an area in the southwest of the province on the mainland that includes Metro Vancouver, and the Fraser Valley, a region about an hour's drive east.

Drivers told to expect water pooling

On Friday, significant snowfall and freezing rain led the province to close two crucial bridges linking communities in Metro Vancouver — the Alex Fraser and Port Mann Bridges over the Fraser River.

The Alex Fraser Bridge reopened around 6:30 a.m. PT on Saturday, though DriveBC warns the bridge is likely to be slippery and slushy due to rain.

The Port Mann Bridge on Highway 1, fully reopened at 5 p.m. PT, but delays are expected due to congestion, according to DriveBC.

Travel advisories remain in place for many provincial highways, urging motorists to only make essential trips.

DriveBC said motorists should be prepared for avalanche risk and road closures due to water pooling. The Sea to Sky Highway, north of Vancouver, which was closed Saturday morning due to multiple crashes fully reopened by 5 p.m. PT. Highway 3 in the southeastern Interior was closed in both directions between Hope and Princeton as of 5:30 p.m. PT due to a crash at Manning Park, about 220 km east of Vancouver.

An 82-kilometre stretch of Highway 97C connecting Peachland and Merritt was closed in both directions as of 7:30 p.m. PT due to a collision near the Loon Lake exit involving a passenger bus. Police confirmed that RCMP and Emergency Health Services are currently on scene assessing the situation.

The Trans-Canada Highway was closed from Golden, B.C. to Revelstoke and from Sicamous to Revelstoke. Additionally, Highway 31 was closed at Lardeau on the north end of Kooteney Lake, due to high avalanche risk.

DriveBC said avalanche control work has forced the closure of a portion of Highway 16 connecting Prince Rupert and Terrace from 9 p.m. to 11 p.m. PT. 

On Friday, ice buildup on SkyTrain lines caused the suspension of service on the Expo Line for several hours in the afternoon, significant delays on the Millennium Line, and closure of the Canada Line between certain stations.

SkyTrain services have resumed though treacherous conditions across the system caused delays on Saturday.

Buses will remain off the roads in the Fraser Valley "until further notice," according to B.C. Transit.

Freezing rain a significant hazard

Freezing rain — when low surface temperatures cause rain to reach freezing temperatures near the ground — remains a threat on the South Coast and could lead to icy and slippery conditions. The freezing rain is forecast to turn to regular rain in most regions of the Fraser Valley by Saturday evening.

The province has also forecast that Highway 97 in Pine Pass and other areas of the South Peace region, which shares a border with central Alberta, will experience freezing rain starting early on Monday, Dec. 26. This is expected to create potentially hazardous driving conditions. 

While up to 70 millimetres of rain continues to fall on most of southwest B.C., much of the central Interior and north is blanketed by winter storm warnings, with many highways expected to see "heavy snow," according to Environment Canada meteorologist Bobby Sekhon.

"We're not expecting large-scale flooding [in the valley]," Sekhon said.

"The main risk of flooding is actually urban flooding or localized flooding from poor drainage," he said, adding it's important to keep storm drains clear.