Share this page!

Tyler Olsen Profile picture
Twitter logo
14 Nov, 40 tweets, 13 min read
This U.S. river should be what everyone in the Lower Mainland is watching. When the Nooksack floods, it frequently runs north into Canada and Abbotsford. It has the potential to shut down Highway 1 between Chilliwack & Abbotsford and refill Sumas Lake.
abbynews.com/news/the-frase…
This is a long-standing issue (the quote below is from 2016), but while there was a whole task force on the Nooksack to look at cross-border flooding, it didn't meet once between 2012 and 2019. Anyways, worth keeping an eye on that gauge.
abbynews.com/news/nooksack-… Image
The City of Abbotsford, at least, has been doing work on this. Last year it produced this report. Part of the goal was to show senior levels of government of the need to prevent a future flood.
abbotsford.ca/sites/default/…
Worth noting: At this point, the current estimate of a peak around 149 feet, would put it at the fourth highest crest in the last two decades. Which is bad, but below 1990 levels.
water.weather.gov/ahps2/crests.p…
A new prediction has upgraded the predicted crest of the Nooksack by 50cm, right at the historic record mark. Image
They're sandbagging in Sumas (photo: Troy Dykes). No flood warning yet in Abbotsford. facebook.com/troy.dykes.10/… Image
Though the border is closed. h/t @bubbaray90
Forecast crest of Nooksack near Glacier (upstream of Cedarwood) has also been upgraded. ImageImage

This is here. Image
Whatcom County has issued a flood warning, predicting the Nooksack will overflow its banks at Everson and "overflow of flood waters will result in flooding ... from Everson north toward Sumas and the Canadian border."
facebook.com/wcfd14/posts/1…
Yep. River crested at 148.7 ft (about a foot lower than is now predicted) in 2020.
*Also, I screwed up cm earlier, not realizing the numbers were in imperial.
water.weather.gov/ahps2/crests.p…
*CORECTION: NOT .5 metres. .5 feet. Imperial and all that. Sorry.
Cultus Lake Road closed in Columbia Valley h/t for this and others @bubbaray90
In 1990, a Nooksack flood inundated Sumas Prairie and closed Highway 1 between Chilliwack and Abbotsford. That was estimated to be a one-in-35-years event. It has been 31 years. And analysts believe climate change increases the likelihood of such a flood.
Very general flood watch for the valley
bcrfc.env.gov.bc.ca/warnings/index…
I haven't seen it anywhere else, but if I were commuting between Abbotsford and Chilliwack tomorrow, I would at least be conscious of the *possibility* that there is a possibility the highway will be closed at some point, for some length of time.
NEW: From @AbbyPoliceDept "Various flooding and small mudslides reported in Abbotsford.
City has activated Emergency Operations Centre.
facebook.com/AbbyPoliceDept…
Refresher to start of thread:
Meanwhile, the Nooksack curve has thankfully began to bend, a bit. River still forecast to hit all-time high. Image
Alas, the rain is expected to just keep coming:
NEW: City of Sumas, just across the border from Abbotsford, says it expects major flooding to begin early this morning between 1 and 3am. Residents advised to elevate all belongings & vehicles now. facebook.com/sumascityhall/…
All this is kinda worrying but at least there are no scorpions
🚨 New update from City of Sumas, says Nooksack River overflowed in afternoon and is working its way to Sumas: "It is moving a little faster than we expected. It could arrive in Sumas as early as 11pm tonight." facebook.com/sumascityhall/…
I tried to compile most of what we know, and how to find out more, all in one @currentfv story. Subscribe at fvcurrent.com for... stuff. fvcurrent.com/article/fraser…
Just asked if I've seen a place to fill sandbags. I hadn't, but apparently Townsend Park in Chilliwack has some. Worth noting that city officials in Sumas started preparations for sandbagging more than 24 hours ago facebook.com/permalink.php?…
Specific list of Abbotsford evacuations:
Nooksack expected to crest soon. New forecast vs. forecast from 11 hours ago ImageImage
The Nooksack, remember, is important because the worst-case scenario can do this. I.E. it could re-fill a long-drained lake. (This particular storm is not forecast to be the worst-case scenario, but it's definitely a not-all-that-great scenario)
#BCStorm Image
Fraser Valley Regional District declares State of Local Emergency
Latest highway closures:
You never want a waterfall where there ain't supposed to be a waterfall. That's just science.
Abbotsford sandbags:
Interlude: Time for a drink. This is not a Grolsch. It is cider.
Recipe: Dump a ton of apple juice into a container, add some yeast, maybe some dextrose, and wait a bit. Image
This is important for the mannnnny people stranded in Hope. And Grace Baptist Church is opening its doors for anyone who needs a place to stay. See: facebook.com/groups/hopebul…
New thread for Nov. 15:

• • •

Missing some Tweet in this thread? You can try to force a refresh
　

Keep Current with Tyler Olsen

Tyler Olsen Profile picture

Stay in touch and get notified when new unrolls are available from this author!

Read all threads

This Thread may be Removed Anytime!

PDF

Twitter may remove this content at anytime! Save it as PDF for later use!

Try unrolling a thread yourself!

how to unroll video
  1. Follow @ThreadReaderApp to mention us!

  2. From a Twitter thread mention us with a keyword "unroll"
@threadreaderapp unroll

Practice here first or read more on our help page!

More from @ty_olsen

Tyler Olsen Profile picture
16 Nov
🚨 BREAKING: This worst-case scenario is starting to become reality. Water is pouring over a large dike separating the bulk of lands currently flooded from the former bed of Sumas Lake. Highway will likely be closed for days.
Abbotsford Mayor Henry Braun told me that he had never seen so much water, that it is continuing to flow from the Nooksack, and that there remains a steady stream coming over the border into Abbotsford. It's all very, very bad.
Story coming shortly at fvcurrent.com
And please subscribe to the @currentfv newsletter for an in-depth story tomorrow explaining how the Nooksack and the legacy of the draining of Sumas Lake are combining to create this disaster.
Read 4 tweets
Tyler Olsen Profile picture
16 Nov
New day, new thread and, wellllllp
Not one news story (aside from ours, link below) right now, mentions Sumas Lake. Which is a problem given the crucial role it is playing in the flooding. We'll be spending our day on on the lake that was (and may be again).
fvcurrent.com/article/fraser…
google.com/search?q=%22su…
The problem, again, is that all this Nooksack River water wants to flow downhill. And downhill isn't necessarily toward the Fraser but toward the old lake bed of Sumas Lake. Which used to look like this: Image
Read 43 tweets
Tyler Olsen Profile picture
15 Nov
1. Side thread: With the Nooksack in "major flood" stage and its water heading north of the border (hence the evac alerts), worth considering what that can mean. Luckily we have a report from last year spelling out just what a Nooksack flood can look like.
2. Study looked at a variety of scenarios. Unclear right now which one we are looking at. We haven't yet seen Highway 1 closed, as happened in 1990, but that seems verrrrrrry possible. Image
3. One potential consequence: Flooding of many farm parcels with sewage lagoons. Image
Read 8 tweets
Tyler Olsen Profile picture
15 Nov
New day, new thread. And the Nooksack will soon be in "major flood" territory, if it is not already, which has big implications for the Fraser Valley. Image
This morning, we'll be updating this story, with the highway latest, power outages, evacuations, etc.: fvcurrent.com
Schools closed: Chilliwack, Mission.
Open: Abbotsford, Langley
Pro-D days in Fraser-Cascade
Read 15 tweets
Tyler Olsen Profile picture
15 Nov
Alright. Signing off with this. I've done quite a bit of
informing-the-public work today. Also did some parenting & played a hockey game. Maybe did a half day of work? Worth considering when looking at how our public institutions have informed the public.
Not quite off. One other thing: Clearly climate change increases the likelihood of these things. But if I hear one more politician cite these disasters as reasons we need to address climate change while at the same time not planning for disasters *now,* so help me...
And planning doesn't mean "funding some plan for some initiative for some action." Funding means ensuring your office knows how to address an emergency if it were to occur tomorrow. Like actually talking about how to get the word out about an impending flood.
Read 4 tweets
Tyler Olsen Profile picture
6 Aug
The good thing is that cases are only going up in the Central Okanagan so if we control the spread there and stay away, the mission will once again be accomplished.
Dammit. That was the Fraser Health graph. Let's try that again.
Whoops. That was the Vancouver Island graph. Here:
Read 5 tweets

Did Thread Reader help you today?

Support us! We are indie developers!

This site is made by just two indie developers on a laptop doing marketing, support and development! Read more about the story.

Become a Premium Member ($3/month or $30/year) and get exclusive features!

Become Premium

Too expensive? Make a small donation by buying us coffee ($5) or help with server cost ($10)

Donate via Paypal

Thank you for your support!

Follow Us on Twitter!

Like this author's thread?

Get emails when @ty_olsen has new unrolls!

Check out other threads from @ty_olsen!

Read all threads by @ty_olsen

:(