Evacuation alert issued for 30 properties in Fraser Valley as flood, landslide risks increase | CBC News
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About 30 properties in the Fraser Valley are under evacuation alert as the atmospheric river pummeling B.C. increases flood and landslide risks in several parts of the province.
The two alerts, which affect the Sheldon Road and Wilson Road areas, mean residents must be ready to leave at short notice.
Fraser Valley Regional District (FVRD) said the alerts, which it announced Thursday afternoon, are due to “the potential danger to life and safety due to an atmospheric river event with high river flows in the Chilliwack River Valley.”
The district declared a state of local emergency earlier Thursday morning, saying the atmospheric river “poses an existing or imminent threat to people and property within the area known as FVRD Electoral Areas E.”
The Fraser Valley is under a rainfall warning issued by Environment Canada, which noted prolonged heavy rain on snow could lead to the potential for flooding.
The atmospheric river has already flooded and forced the evacuation of parts of the small community of Ocean Falls and Martin Valley on the Central Coast, and also caused a mudslide in Coquitlam, a Vancouver suburb.