Rainfall warning in effect for Lower Mainland, flooding possible
Posted October 14, 2021 7:25 pm.
Last Updated October 15, 2021 6:06 am.
VANCOUVER (NEWS 1130) — B.C.’s South Coast is in for a wet, windy weekend, with a rainfall warning in effect for Metro Vancouver.
NEWS 1130 Meteorologist Michael Kuss says heavy precipitation is expected to start on Friday with up to 150 millimetres of rain possible in some areas.
“This is a classic atmospheric river setup where we get, basically, a hose of water that comes out of the Pacific and it shoots toward the South Coast,” he explains, adding this kind of weather is much more common on the province’s North Coast.
“We don’t see that much water around here but when we get it, it normally lasts for a couple of days.”
Heaviest rain looks like Friday afternoon into early Saturday. River may meander to the North Saturday which would give Vancouver a warm windy dry spell for part of the day. Still plenty of uncertainty. @CityNewsVAN #bcstorm pic.twitter.com/abCs12Aex4
— Michael Kuss (@Kusswx) October 14, 2021
Conditions lately aren’t usually seen until later in the fall, he notes.
“It got off to an early start. Temperatures have been quite cool for the last couple of weeks and we’ve seen more precipitation through September and now into early October compared to average.”
Special weather statement for the BC South Coast. Rain, heavy at times, into the weekend. Potential for 30-100 mm by Friday night across Metro Vancouver. #BCStorm @CityNewsVAN pic.twitter.com/u1psnKkRMS
— Michael Kuss (@Kusswx) October 14, 2021
The forecast brings concerns about flooding in low-lying areas, and water pooling on roads.
“We have saturated ground already because we have had moisture over the last few days, and then we have all this water on top of it. On top of that, we have snow in the alpine, a little bit anyway, so we’ll get some melting snow to combine with all that water.”
There is some hope that things will clear up before the weekend is through, according to Kuss.
“It looks like the cold front with this system will track through early on Sunday. If it does, the sky will clear out. Temperatures aren’t going to be super warm, but it should be dry through at least a good chunk of Sunday.”
Listen to NEWS 1130 for the latest weather updates for Vancouver and the Lower Mainland every 10 minutes after traffic on the ones.
