An evacuation alert was issued to residents in the unprotected floodplain areas of Northwest Langley, Glen Valley and Brae and McMillan Island on Tuesday morning.
This was not an evacuation order.
#BCflood #2018freshet MT @LangleyTownship: #Evacuation Alert issued for unprotected floodplain areas of Northwest Langley, Glen Valley & Brae and McMillan Island. This is NOT an Evacuation Order. Updates https://t.co/nNaDd8ZFmX & https://t.co/17GVOAYo7s
— Emergency Info BC (@EmergencyInfoBC) May 15, 2018
According to the Township of Langley, at 9 a.m. on May 15, the Mission Gauge reached 5.5 metres, prompting the alert to be sent out to give residents time to prepare for a potential evacuation order.
Some trail closures have been put into effect as well. The Marina Park trail in Fort Langley is closed from the viewing deck to the Marina Boat Launch, as well as the Fort to Fort Trail from the Salmon River Pump Station west to the Fort Langley Golf Course. A portion of the Trans Canada Trail is also closed at the trail head entrance on the southwest corner of Allard Crescent and 208 Street.
This is not the first time this area of Langley has been on watch for rising river levels in the spring. Every year, a freshet occurs in May and June when melting snow packs on the mountains run into surrounding rivers.
In 1948, a massive flood surrounded Fort Langley, completely cutting the town off from the rest of Langley for two weeks.
The last time any major flooding occurred in the Township of Langley was in June, 2012, when heavy rain over the Fraser River headwaters led to rising river levels throughout the province.
For live readings of the Fraser River water levels at Mission, click here.
EVACUATION STAGES
Emergency Info BC has three levels of evacuation states for flooding.
An evacuation order means residents are at risk and must leave the area immediately.
An evacuation alert means residents should be ready to leave on short notice.
An evacuation rescind means the area is safe, and residents can return home.
miranda@langleytimes.com
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Elevation Model with Protected and Unprotected Areas by Miranda Gathercole on Scribd
