Victoria/Fraser Valley – The term “atmospheric river” now makes people nervous. Remember when it was just called a “pineapple express”?
From the Province:
People living on the South Coast are encouraged to prepare for a series of rainstorms starting Saturday, Jan. 27 and extending to Wednesday, Jan. 31, 2024.
During the five days, Environment and Climate Change Canada is forecasting:
* as much as 300 millimetres (mm) of rain on West Vancouver Island and in the Coast Mountains;
* as much as 250 mm in the Howe Sound area;
* as much as 150 mm in Inland Vancouver Island;
* as much as 120 mm in the Fraser Valley (Abbotsford to Chilliwack), Sea to Sky and North and Central Coast areas; and
* as much as 60 mm in the Southern Gulf Islands, Fraser Valley (Hope), Fraser Canyon and the Coquihalla regions.
From the BC River Forecast Centre on January 25:
The River Forecast Centre is issuing a Flood Watch for:
- South Coast including Howe Sound, Sunshine Coast, Sea-to-Sky and North Shore
Mountains - Fraser Valley – North including tributaries from Port Coquitlam to Harrison
- Vancouver Island
The River Forecast Centre is issuing a High Streamflow Advisory for: - Lower Fraser River tributaries including areas around Pemberton and Lillooet River
tributaries, Fraser Valley – East (tributaries around Abbotsford, Hope), and Fraser
Canyon
Weather Synopsis:
A series of potent storms is forecast to impact coastal British Columbia this weekend and next week, with an initial storm Friday, again on Saturday-Sunday, and another into Monday.
Current forecasting is indicating the strongest atmospheric river event making landfall on
Monday, with the potential for additional rainfall in the middle of next week. The heaviest
rainfall is currently forecast over West Vancouver Island and the Coast Mountains. In these
areas, total rainfall from Saturday to Wednesday is forecasted to be 200 to 300 mm, with the
potential for localized areas to receive up to 400 mm. Areas around Howe Sound, Sunshine
Coast, other areas of Vancouver Island, Metro Vancouver, Sea-to-Sky, and Fraser Valley are
forecast to receive 70 to 250 mm of precipitation. Temperatures are expected to warm during
this period, and snowmelt at lower and mid-elevations will provide additional runoff.
