UPDATE: Delta Mayor Lois Jackson has cancelled the state of emergency “as the situation in Boundary Bay and Beach Grove no longer requires emergency status.”
Residents in Delta are bracing for another fierce lashing from Mother Nature. A combination of high wind and major waves is expected to hit the area later this morning.
The Boundary Bay and Beach Grove areas are expected to feel the biggest impact.
High tide is forecast to hit at 9 a.m. this morning and officials are worried about the potential of storm surge causing widespread flooding.
The city of Delta is asking the public to stay away from the shoreline and nearby areas to allow crews to respond effectively and immediately.
A home was evacuated following the collapse of the seawall on Seaview Rd. off 67th St. on Tuesday, and crews were constructing a temporary berm to protect homes as the city prepares for the second storm.
Related: Heavy rain, wind and record-breaking heat hits the South Coast
Meanwhile, some 30,000 sandbags line a stretch of low-lying waterfront land in Vancouver, placed by city workers in a bid to protect local homes from an anticipated king tide.
The task was completed by about 45 workers in advance of Wednesday’s forecasted weather event, which could coincide with the same type of high winds and heavy rains that have already cut power to thousands of residents across the south coast and flooded streets.
Brian Crowe, a spokesman for the city’s engineering department, said king tides can approach five metres in elevation, or about one metre higher than a typical high tide, and can form storm surges when they are combined with low-pressure systems.
He said Wednesday’s king tide is forecast for 5.5 metres, which is the same elevation of water that flooded Locarno Beach Park on the city’s waterfront in 2012, but not nearby homes.
“We have sandbagged about 200 metres in the lowest area along Marine Drive adjacent to the park to ensure the water can’t get past the edge of the park into the neighbourhood,” he said.
“This is a proactive move. We don’t actually believe the water will be high enough tomorrow to cross the street, but we have high tides happening periodically through the Christmas season until early in January.”
-with files from Catherine Urquhart and Canadian Press
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