Mudslide washes out Shuswap town's water system as flooding persists across B.C.
Hundreds of people in the Seymour Arm community of British Columbia's North Shuswap region are without water after a mudslide destroyed vital infrastructure there Thursday evening.
Seymour Arm water manager Bob Reimer said the mudslide on Long Ridge wiped out the diversion structure for Bass Creek, which feeds water to about 200 households.
"We're not surprised," Reimer said, adding that there have been a few mudslides in that area over the last few years. "But it's an inconvenience."
Crews are currently assessing the damage and hope to have a temporary system back in place in a few days, Reimer said. In the meantime, people in the community have to collect water from nearby Shuswap Lake.
Flood warnings and advisories across B.C.
The mudslide was one of several incidents related to wet weather across the province over the past few days, as flooding persists for the Fraser, Quesnel and Chilcotin rivers among others.
Flood warnings and advisories from the B.C. River Forecasting Centre covered nearly half the province on Saturday.
The City of Prince George issued an evacuation alert at midday Saturday for the residents of Farrell Street across from Paddlewheel Park due to significant risk of flooding from the Fraser River.
The Fraser Valley Regional District said the Fraser River peaked in Mission on Monday, and while the water has receded since then, "heavy rainfall in the Fraser River headwaters is leading to an overall rise of the Fraser River throughout the weekend with peaks expected on Monday or Tuesday next week.
Evacuation alerts have been issued for 38 properties in the district.
The Cariboo Regional District says flood warnings are in place throughout the region and river levels may continue to rise, despite a sunny weather forecast for the next few days.
The district is warning residents to exercise extreme caution around fast-moving water, riverbanks and lake shorelines. It says ongoing wet weather has saturated the ground and increased the risk of landslides.
