The City of New Westminster is taking action to prepare for the possibility of flooding on the Fraser River.
The latest information from the B.C. River Forecast Centre indicates that above-normal spring runoff volume is expected in most basins because of the above-normal snow packs throughout most of B.C. As of May 1, 2012, the snow pack in the Lower Fraser basin was 126 per cent of normal levels.
"Given this, there is an elevated risk of high water levels that is dependent on weather, in particular, a long stretch of warm weather that would increase the snow melt," said a May 8 press release from the City of New Westminster. "In the coming weeks, the City of New Westminster engineering operations department will be in the Braid Street industrial area and Quayside neighbourhood, making preparations in the event that Fraser River flooding occurs."
Work in these areas will include staging of equipment and temporary dyke material. The city will continue to do regular dyke patrols in Queensborough.
According to the city's press release, the New Westminster emergency management office will continue to monitor the situation through regular liaison with the experts at the federal and provincial government levels and will continue to provide updates to the community as necessary.
"A program of temporary dyking measures developed in 2007 for the downtown waterfront area, and the Braid industrial area utilizing concrete lock blocks and sandbags has been updated for 2012," stated an April 30 report to council. "The majority (75 to 80 per cent) of the concrete blocks from 2007 are still in place, and will be utilized in the event of a high-water event."
According to the report, the city currently has an inventory of 30,000 sandbags and has made arrangements with local suppliers for additional sandbags, sand, aggregate and temporary pumps if needed.
