High Streamflow Advisory: South Interior (Okanagan, Shuswap)

Issued Sunday afternoon

The BC River Forecast Centre is issuing a High Streamflow Advisory for small to medium sized watersheds in the South Interior including:

Okanagan
– including areas to the east of Kelowna to Vernon, including Mission Creek Shuswap
– including the Salmon River near Falkland through to Salmon Arm, Sicamous and surrounding areas

An upper trough of low pressure is moving across the BC Interior this week. This system contains moist, unstable air, which is forecast to deliver rain. Environment Canada has issued a special weather statement for the region, with total rainfall amounts of 15 to 25mm possible into Monday.

Heavy snow melt has occurred through the region over the past 3-4 days in response to high temperatures, and many of the regions small to medium-sized creeks are flowing high due to this melt.

The Salmon River at Falkland (Water Survey of Canada gauge 08LE020) is currently flowing at an estimated 30 m3/s (exceeding a 5-year flow).

Mission Creek near East Kelowna (08NM116) is flowing at approximately 40 m3/s (below a 2-year flow). Additional rises in river levels are expected into Monday in response to the additional forecasted rainfall. Larger river systems and rivers with higher and mountainous terrain in their watersheds are still well below levels of concern.