The Okanagan Indian Band is planning a meeting this week to give evacuated residents a full update on the flood situation related to Whiteman’s Creek in Parker Cove, B.C.
OKIB said in a statement Sunday, creek flows have reduced substantially, however, there is still 39 centimetres of snowpack in the watershed that will come down.
A helicopter will be landing in Komasket Park Sunday to fly OKIB Emergency Management crews over the watershed to visually assess the situation as it evolves.
“It is hoped that lower overnight temperatures will continue to slow the rate of water coming down the mountain and spread the effects over a longer period of time,” said OKIB.
OKIB said emergency management crews are continuing to move silt and debris from Whiteman’s Creek bridge.
“The creek is filled with silt and water may overtop the bridge,” read the statement.
A third excavator was working in a gravel pit with 20,000 sandbags in reserve.
OKIB said five other creeks on the Westside are rising, but have not yet overflowed.
The OKIB Emergency Support Services located at 8 Bonneau Rd., at New Horizons, was closed Sunday and will reopen Monday at 10 a.m.
As of Sunday, 55 households and 110 evacuees had registered with ESS services.
OKIB has delivered 285 dump truck loads of sand to Whiteman’s Creek sandbagging station since Monday.
Evacuation orders issued earlier in the week were still in effect Sunday for residents of Falcon Avenue, for some beachfront properties and nearby homes in Parker Cove.
The community update meeting for evacuated residents only will take place at the Best Western Hotel in Vernon at 5 p.m. Friday.