New flooding priority

Sandbags and bladder dams located around Mill Creek in Kelowna are being removed and relocated to Okanagan Lake.

Public information officer Ed Henczel says the focus is on protecting public infrastructure, but resources are not the same as last year.

“Right now, we don’t have the resources we did last year with the fire crews out fighting fires right now, so (we) don’t have many sandbags,” he said.

Sandbags are being repurposed to more threatened areas, but homeowners still need to protect their own homes.

“It’s up to the homeowners to protect their own properties because we don’t have those crews to help them out with the sandbags,” said Henczel.

Currently, creek levels are not a concern.

“Low-level snowpack is pretty much melted, so Mill Creek is less of an issue,” he said. “Mission Creek is less of a concern right now, as ... it’s under 40 cubic metres a second.”

The dikes along Mission Creek can handle 140 cubic metres a second, said Henczel.

“The lake continues to rise. It went up 2.3 centimetres overnight,” he said. “If you own property along the foreshore or were impacted by the flood last year, take the same protective measures.”

For locations where sandbags can be picked up, visit this link. People who want to help with flood protection can contact Kelowna Community Resources at 250-763-8008 ext. 221 or [email protected].

Central Okanagan Emergency Operations is asking boaters to be cautious about floating debris and if people find debris on the foreshore, to leave it in place. 

Sandbags will remain in place along the mouths of Mission Creek and Mill Creek for protection.