Concerned but hopeful

Surprised and thankful. That was the reaction of Green Bay Property Owners' Association president Bea Kline when she learned the military was being deployed to help with flood mitigation in the neighbourhood.

"Truthfully, all of the province is in trouble. The Fraser River, Grand Forks, my heart goes out to everybody. We're all in trouble this year," Kline said Friday morning.

Forty-five troops from CFB Edmonton, part of a larger deployment sent to assist with flood mitigation, were sent to Green Bay Friday.

Kline said residents felt they may be safe from flooding this year because so much water had been let out of the lake. However, they've been watching day-over-day as it continued to rise.

This is not a precaution, said Kline. "We are going to flood."

Jean Buckner, another resident, said the community is concerned.

"We don't want to see any devastation again and go through what we went through last year," she said.

West Kelowna assistant fire chief Brent Watson says military personnel will be looking after filling and placing sandbags.

"Our primary focus is protecting our critical infrastructure, but the unique nature of our infrastructure in Green Bay requires us to protect the entire neighbourhood," said Watson.

The deployment reflects the fact the Southern Interior is facing a "real threat from floods," he said.

Okanagan Lake is a mere 1.6 centimetres from reaching full pool. At noon Friday, the lake level was 342.464 metres above sea level.

It is expected to hit full pool today and surpass it over the weekend. According to provincial officials, flood danger is about 35 centimetres above full pool.