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Vernon  

100 homes threatened

Like communities up and down the Valley, the Okanagan Indian Band is keeping a close eye on the lake and the weather.

Tuesday's wind storm flooded several homes in the Head of the Lake area and more than 100 others are threatened by the rising waters.

The area was one of the worst hit by yesterday's storm.

A handful of people have been evacuated due to the rising water.

OKIB Chief Byron Louis said plans are in place to evacuate other people if necessary, adding so far there are 115 homes at risk by the flood waters.

“We had approximately 200,000 sandbags being filled,” said Louis on Wednesday. “We're looking at 750 residents along Okanagan Lake on reserve lands that could be affected.”

Louis is also keeping an eye on what is happening in the South Okanagan.

He said the amount of water let out of Okanagan Lake in the South Okanagan impacts the North Okanagan.

“It's affected by the Similkameen River that can act like a dam on the lower Okanagan and it can start backing water up into Osoyoos Lake and if that happens it's going to have a chain reaction all the way up the Valley. The river in Washington State can only hold so much water, so we could be in this all through June,” said Louis.

Other concerns the band has are septic fields and holding tanks. Many homes in the area are on septic and Louis has concerns about the flood waters washing all that material into the lake.

A public information meeting will be held at at Head of the Lake Hall, 118 Head of the Lake Rd. Thursday, May 25 from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m.



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