Multiple properties along the Skeena River have been evacuated in northwestern British Columbia, amid rising floodwaters.
The Regional District of Kitimat Stikine has declared a local state of emergency for parts of Electoral Area C, and issued evacuation orders for all properties in New Remo, west of Terrace, and all properties in Old Remo, past the intersection of Old Remo Road and White Bottom.
On Friday afternoon, an evacuation alert for Dutch Valley was upgraded to an evacuation order.
RCMP said a 73-year-old man was found dead in a flooded basement of a home in the 6700-block of Kilby Road in New Remo, inside the evacuation zone, and that the death was “likely” related to the high river.
B.C.’s River Forecast Centre has issue flood warnings for the Skeena Rive above the Babine River, the Stikine River and its tributaries, and the Tuya River.
Flood watches were also in place for the entire Skeena and Kispiox rivers and their tributaries, the Nass River and its tributaries, the Kitsumkalum River and the Driftwood River above Kastberg Creek.
A 44-kilometre section of Highway 113, between Spruce Drive and Nass Road along the Nass River was closed due flooding.
“Rivers in the Skeena‐Nass region continue to rise from heavy rain earlier in the week. Additional precipitation is forecast to arrive Friday to Saturday,” the forecast centre said in a Thursday bulletin.
“Although the upcoming storm is not expected to be as intense as the atmospheric river earlier in the week, the added rain and
continued melting mountain snowpack may cause additional rises in the rivers.”
The centre said coastal areas around Prince Rupert could see between 20 and 60 mm of rain into the weekend, while 20 to 30 mm were forecast for inland areas such as Terrace and Stewart.
“The rivers in the region are highly sensitive to any additional rain or rain‐on‐melting snow due to their current high flow state,” it said.