2018 play by play Mill Creek flood forum

[Queen K]

[Jlabute]

[Urban Cowboy]

With the amount of snow up in the hills, some had best prepare for some water coming down, and what level Okanagan Lake sits at will have little to do with it.

[LTD]

snow in the hills is melting fast shouldn't be a problem this year unless we get some really hot weather

[GordonH]

1 of the biggest causes of last years flooding of Mill creek was massive cloud burst near start of the creek.
What are chances of a repeat, time will tell.

[Urban Cowboy]

I just mean that there are areas that are always prone to flooding during runoff, and with the exceptional amount of snowpack it could be a bit worse depending on temperature, and whether we get endless rain or not.

Oldtrucker resides in one such place, areas that tend to flood no matter what level Okanagan Lake sits at.

I drove through OK Center the other day, and it looks like Okanagan Lake has a good three feet of runoff storage capacity, and they are still letting it go down further.

I don't think we'll see it getting to the point of destroying docks and such this year, but it would still be nice if the weather cooperates, and allows the melt to happen more gradually. Currently it's been near perfect with temps dropping to or below freezing at night, but it is still mid March. Last year at this time, the snow dump in the higher elevations, hadn't even happened yet.

[kgcayenne]

Shhhhhhhh or a month of wind will blow the snowpack away and we'll be left with drought conditions and stage 3 water restrictions.

[Poindexter]

Shhhhhhhh or a month of wind will blow the snowpack away and we'll be left with drought conditions and stage 3 water restrictions.

They probably know that Okanagan residents will loose thier minds if it floods again. I have to wonder whether this fear of a repeat will cause them to over compensate.

[Urban Cowboy]

Shhhhhhhh or a month of wind will blow the snowpack away and we'll be left with drought conditions and stage 3 water restrictions.

They probably know that Okanagan residents will loose thier minds if it floods again. I have to wonder whether this fear of a repeat will cause them to over compensate.

Doesn't appear to be the case so far, but I don't envy the floodgate keeper his position.

To some degree it will always be guesswork. We know there's an unusually high amount of snow up high now, plus we know once Mission Creek starts flowing full tilt, it puts water into the lake, much faster than it can be let out at the other end, so it looks like he's doing the right thing.

If last year taught us anything though, it's that what happens in April and May can hugely influence the overall outcome.

[Urban Cowboy]

2018-03-19 @ 14:33hrs
No rise in the water yet. I can still cross Mill Creek in gumboots.

Let us know when you have to switch to hip waders.

[Queen K]

And a canoe

[Jflem1983]

Only took one good rain last year. Creecks do not get properly dredged due to enviro nuts.

Flood plains are occupied by cities.


Ahhh planning to fail

[alanjh595]

2018-03-23@ 15:40hrs Water level up only 6-8 cm.
I still have that Led Zep song playing in my head from 2017."When the levee breaks, we'll have no place to stay..."

Pretty obscure song to associate to this situation.

[Urban Cowboy]

Yeah I remember that, and Shadow Ridge was underwater for quite some time too.

[RustyCrayon]

The rain is really coming down... How are things going over there?