UPDATE 9:15 a.m. Parts of the Mission Creek Greenway recreation trail are closed due to rising water levels in the creek. “Until Mission Creek returns to a safe level and our staff can safely assess the condition of the trail, the Greenway is closed from the south entrance of Hollywood Road to the Peck Road car park up to the Field Road entrance.” , said Bruce Smith, RDCO Communications Officer. Underpasses on the Truswell / Lakeshore, Gordon Drive and Casorso Road bridges are all closed. “Pedestrians and cyclists on the Greenway are advised to be careful and to cross only when safe at intersections on Truswell Road, Lexington Drive and Casorso Road. “Motorists are also urged to be on the lookout for Greenway users who may cross roads in these areas while underpasses are closed,” Smith added. Regional Parks staff watch the creek along the Greenway Amusement Park and Scenic Canyon Regional Park. Until the water recedes, people should stay indoors and respect all signage. UPDATE 8:48 a.m. The city of Kelowna is in the process of assessing the flood situation throughout the city on Tuesday morning. Sandra Follack, regional emergency program coordinator at Central Okanagan, tells Castanet that the accumulation of debris where Mission Creek intersects with the streets is a cause for concern. An accumulation of debris in the KLO causes water to dangerously overflow the bridge. “If people see something we do not know happen, call the Kelowna City Department of Public Works, otherwise stay away from low water.” Follack says the sandbag is in development on Lakeshore and Radent Rd. ORIGINAL 6:44 a.m. Kelowna’s Mission Creek has been spilled on its banks as rain continues to fall and alerts for high stream flow remain in effect for much of BC. Residents woke up to find that the creek had risen two feet during the night. Readers’ photos show flooded yards, streets and parking lots in the Lakeshore Road area. Meanwhile, rivers and creeks throughout the area are flowing faster as the water level rises. The River Prediction Center issued high-flow alerts Monday across Okanagan, Boundary and Similkameen, and similar alerts remain for the Thompson area and the entire Fraser River corridor from the Quesnel south to the Pacific. Elsewhere, flood warning was issued for the Elk River in Fernie and flood observations were made for rivers around Invermere, Radium, Revelstoke and Shuswap. Central Okanagan Regional Emergency Program Coordinator Sandra Follack said Monday that residents should be watching closely for the next 24 hours. Lake Okanagan is also close to the full swimming pool. “The lake is approaching a full pool, so this raises some concerns and some of the homes in our area need to do certain things when we reach a full pool and we would like to remind people to stay away from rivers and streams,” he said. Follack. However, heavy flooding is not expected throughout the interior in 2017 and 2018. Residents can pick up empty sandbags at the Kelowna Fire Department, and the town of West Kelowna coordinates weekly sandbags and sandbag deliveries to seaside locations. Environment Canada’s latest forecast requires more rainfall by Thursday.
