B.C'sNorth Thompson River on flood watch, Fraser River advisory continues

The B.C. River Forecast Centre has upgraded its ranking to a flood watch for the North Thompson River, including tributaries around Barriere and Clearwater.

It says it is also maintaining flood watches for the CaribooMountains and tributaries flowing westward.

A flood watch follows an advisory and indicates river levels may exceed the bank and flooding could occur.

The centre says rainfall and snowmelt across the region has ledto "ongoing rises in rivers draining from the Cariboo Mountainsover the past week.''

It says it is also maintaining a high streamflow advisory for theFraser River from Quesnel downstream, including Big Bar, Boston Bar,and the Fraser Valley from Hope to the ocean.

Other high streamflow advisories were also issued for theKootenay East and West regions, including Elk River near Fernie,Bull River near Gardner and Kootenay River at Fort Steele, as wellas tributaries in the Kootenay West region around Nelson.

The advisory means that river levels are rising or expected torise, and while no major flooding is expected, minor flooding ispossible.

Weekend snowmelt, rain to keep levels high

The centre says snowmelt and rain throughout the weekend isexpected to keep river levels high. It says increased rainfall isforecast starting Monday and continuing into Tuesday with thepotential to cause flooding.

The flood warning for the Liard River in the northeastern area ofthe province, initially issued Tuesday, was also continued. Thisincludes tributaries around Fort Nelson and Highway 97 toward WatsonLake.

A flood warning is the most serious in a three-tiered alertsystem used by the forecast centre and means flooding is expected.

The centre says it is also maintaining a high streamflow advisoryfor Swift River and other streams and rivers in the mostnorthwestern section of the province.

It says flows are expected to remain elevated through theweekend, but there is risk that rain early next week may cause waterlevels to rise further.

The centre is advising the public to stay clear of fast-movingrivers and potentially unstable riverbanks during thehigh-streamflow period.