Photo: Brennan Scott

High waves at Vernon Yacht Club Tuesday evening.

The winds have died down, and now the reports of damage are coming in.

A powerful storm churned up Okanagan Lake, which was already at flood levels in some areas, causing damage and flooding to many lakefront home owners.

David Wright lives on Willow Shore Road in the Head of the Lake area north of Vernon, and he said despite their best efforts, waves crashed over barriers and flooded several homes.

“We lost the battle in the storm, all our houses are under water now. Many people got evacuated last night. The waves were just too much to handle, even though we had been working hard for weeks (with) thousands of sand bags laid down. The whole community had banded together and worked endless days to try and protect our homes,” said Wright Wednesday morning.

Wright said some people who lived on higher ground rode the storm out, while others evacuated their homes.

“It was so fast and furious with the waves,” he said. “The waves were insane, don't think I have seen them that high in years, if ever.”

Residents in the Okanagan Landing area also took a beating from the wind and waves with reports of destroyed docks and other damage coming in.