Rainfall records broken in Vancouver, Fraser Valley

The atmospheric river over B.C.’s south coast broke several daily records for rainfall across the Lower Mainland between Tuesday and Wednesday.

1130 NewsRadio Meteorologist Michael Kuss says while some wet weather persists, Thursday is unlikely to see anywhere near as much rain.

“The atmospheric river has weakened and is rolling away from the area now. But many areas, in fact, really everywhere from Chilliwack east into the mountains, saw 100-plus millimetres of precipitation over less than a 24-hour period, and all that water still working down through the watershed over the next 24 hours,” said Kuss.

For the date of Dec. 10, records broken in the Fraser Valley include Abbotsford, which reported 86.2 millimetres, Hope, which reported 134.2 millimetres, Agassiz, which reported 91.8 millimetres, and Chilliwack, whose airport reported 110 millimetres of rain — more than doubling the area’s last Dec. 10 record of 52.6 millimetres from 1896.

Other records set for the date Wednesday include the Vancouver International Airport reporting 30.9 millimetres, and White Rock reporting 45 millimetres.

Though not necessarily record-breaking, other B.C. areas reported the following rainfall in millimetres:

Metro Vancouver and Howe Sound:

• Vancouver Harbour: 47
• Burnaby Mountain: 62
• North Delta: 50
• Pitt Meadows: 63
• Coquitlam: 70
• Surrey East: 67
• Langley: 71
• West Vancouver: 47
• Point Atkinson: 66
• Squamish Airport: 54

Fraser Valley:

• Bradner Road: 85
• Agassiz: 103
• Cultus Lake: 125
• Hope Airport: 140

Victoria and the Southern Gulf Islands:

• Victoria University: 62
• Victoria Gonzales: 67
• Saturna Island: 57

Kuss says flooding will continue while local watersheds are overwhelmed, but the province has already seen the heaviest rain of this system.

“Fortunately, looking longer-range, quieter conditions stretch over the next five to seven days.”