Latest atmospheric river not expected to cause flooding issues in Merritt: mayor

The mayor of Merritt is aiming to ease the nerves of residents getting flashbacks to the atmospheric river that flooded the city in 2021.

Speaking to Q101-Merritt Thursday (Dec. 11) morning, Mike Goetz says the BC River Forecast Centre has indicated that it doesn’t expect the Coldwater River to cause any flooding issues for the city.

As of Thursday morning, Goetz says the gauges at the Brookmere and Merritt stations show readings of 51.3 and 21 cubic metres per second (m^3), which would be slightly above a normal spring freshet. During the flood of 2021, he says that flows reached 395 m^3.

“The situation is what’s happening in Hope and the Fraser Valley because that runs down the Coquihalla River, which then runs down toward us,” Goetz says. “When the rain stops there, then we’ll see our levels go down. River forecasting expects levels to drop by several cubic metres over the next few hours and be back to normal flows probably by Saturday.”

Meantime, Goetz says city staff are doing hourly patrols of the weak spots of the dike system in Merritt. He adds that the city will provide sandbags for residents who feel they need it.

An atmospheric river crept over southern portions of the province Wednesday, triggering the closures of all major highways connecting B.C.’s Interior to the Lower Mainland amid heavy rainfall.

As of mid-morning Thursday, the Trans Canada Highway between Hope and Lytton and Highway 99 between Lillooet and Pemberton reopened. Engineering assessments are underway on the Coquihalla Highway between Hope and Merritt and Highway 3 between Hope and Princeton.