Atmospheric river hits British Columbia, causing major floods and landslides, Canada

Another round of heavy rain caused by atmospheric river caused major flooding and landslides in southern British Columbia, Canada, and parts of Washington and Oregon in the United States on November 14 and 15, 2021. Some parts of the region received nearly 255 mm (10 inches) of rain.

At least 106 000 customers lost power in British Columbia and another 140 000 in neighboring Washington state, U.S.

The worst affected was British Columbia where rivers overflowed, and authorities were forced to close roads and bridges.

As many as 100 vehicles were trapped between two landslides on Highway 7, a scenic route running east of Vancouver. The entire area was then evacuated before rescue operations halted Monday night.¹

"There are 275 people trapped on BC Highway 7," Alanna Kelly of Glacier Media reported.²

"People stuck there tell me they’ve done a headcount and a helicopter is being organized to possibly evacuate them out. They tell me everyone is in 'good spirits' and are thankful for technology."

The atmospheric river event caused extensive damage and many landslides, said Dr. Dave Petley of The Landslide Blog.³

"The full picture will not become clear until later this week, but levels of damage to the road network look to be high in places," Petley said.

According to data provided by Environment Canada, rainfall records have been broken in around 20 locations, including Abbotsford which recorded 100.4 mm (3.95 inches) on November 14, breaking the previous record of 48.9 mm (1.92 inches) set in 1998.⁴

From November 13 to 15, Hope in Fraser Valley Regional District recorded 225 mm (8.85 inches) of rain. During the same period, Squamish recorded 206 mm (8.11 inches), Coquihalla Summit 252 mm (9.92 inches), West Vancouver 157 mm (6.18 inches), and Agassiz 208 mm (8.18 inches).

References:

¹ 'Pineapple Express' pummels Pacific Northwest and British Columbia – AccuWeather

² Alanna Kelly – Twitter

³ Landslides and road damage from an atmospheric river event in British Columbia – The Landslide Blog

⁴ Canada and USA – Hundreds Rescued or Evacuated After Floods and Landslides in West – FloodList

Featured image credit: BC Transportation