Atmospheric river sees dozen daily rainfall records fall

A three-day atmospheric river that pounded B.C.’s South Coast over the weekend and caused damaging flash floods also smashed a dozen daily rainfall records.

“The atmospheric river rainfall storm totals are in, and they are staggering for the entire Lower Mainland and most of the South Coast,” 1130 NewsRadio meteorologist Michael Kuss said Monday.

“Coquitlam peaked them all — 256 millimeters recorded over the three-day storm stretch. West Vancouver also saw over 200 millimeters, even downtown Vancouver topping 175 millimeters of precipitation over three steady days,” he explained.

The massive storm saw flash-flooding across the Lower Mainland, with parts of Vancouver, Burnaby, and Surrey all underwater. Coquitlam and North Vancouver were hit by major floods and even mudslides.

Search crews on Monday were still looking for a resident after a home was swept away in Coquitlam. Mounties say they were called out for a report of the slide on Quarry Road around 12:30 p.m. They found a home had been washed away, and police say the homeowner has not been found.

Meanwhile, six properties in North Vancouver remain under an evacuation order due to unstable ground.

“The heaviest rain, the longest lasting rain, of course, was on Saturday. Twelve new daily records for rainfall around the province, including West Vancouver — 134.6 mm, breaking the old record of 34 mm. YVR had 67 mm, a new one. New records in Pitt Meadows, White Rock, Langley, Chilliwack, Agassiz, Abbotsford — all new daily rainfall records for October 19,” Kuss said.

“More rain fell in Coquitlam than Tofino,” he added. “Pretty much everywhere else saw the 100 to 200 millimetre range across the Lower Mainland.”

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