Strong winds are expected for the BC coast before more rain arrives

Strong winds are expected for coastal areas of British Columbia this weekend, potentially causing damage and power outages before another extended period of rain hits the region.

Environment Canada has issued wind warnings for regions including eastern Vancouver Island, Greater Victoria and parts of Metro Vancouver, with gusts of up to 90 km/h expected early Saturday, particularly in exposed coastal areas.

“A frontal system will move across the south coast this evening, bringing a period of brief but strong gusty winds to the region,” the agency said in a warning for coastal parts of Metro Vancouver.

In Haida Gwaii, southeast winds up to 90 km/h and gusts up to 110 km/h are expected to usher in the weather system Friday night.

“Damage to buildings, such as shingles and windows, may occur,” the wind warning for Haida Gwaii said. “Loose objects can be thrown by the wind and cause personal injury or damage. High winds can throw loose objects or cause tree branches to break.”

More rain on the way

The winds will introduce another period of wet weather for the BC coast, following last weekend’s atmospheric river weather system that caused localized flooding and triggered mudslides and washouts, killing at least three people.

An estimated 350 millimeters of rain fell on North Vancouver over three days last weekend.

But Environment Canada meteorologist Ken Dosanjh said the rain in the forecast this weekend will be “nothing” compared to the last storm and will come in a series of “pulses.”

He said North Vancouver could see up to 75 millimeters of rain in the coming days, but it will fall over several days and at a lower intensity than it did last weekend.

“With the atmospheric river, we saw rainfall on the order of 10, even up to 20 millimeters per hour, which is extremely high,” he told The Canadian Press on Thursday.

“In this case, we notice that the rainfall is falling around four to eight millimeters per hour, perhaps reaching 10 (in) extreme cases.”

Evacuation order lifted

The District of North Vancouver has lifted an emergency order for six properties in the Deep Cove area that had been in place since Sunday morning.

The district said crews had finished remediating hazards caused by last weekend’s heavy rains, including restoring creek flow and drainage in the area.

Mayor Mike Little said crews had been working all week to make sure drainage basins are ready for more expected rain.

“We’ve been out scooping up rocks and debris that came down creeks and rivers onto streets throughout the district,” he said Thursday.

Little said he is confident the district’s systems will be able to handle the rain in the forecast, although he is concerned that certain areas are still “vulnerable to a moderate amount of rainfall” after the recent drenching.

He said the Woodlands area of ​​North Vancouver has seen rocks fall into creeks since last weekend and the canals need to be cleared.

Little, whose basement was also flooded, said some homes in the district are “severely damaged” and it will take time for residents to recover.