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To: altair19 who wrote (40276)	1/18/2005 1:17:19 PM
From: abuelita	Respond to of 104191

altkey- the crew is back now - three of them - one to work, two to watch. oiy! -rhoze

To: altair19 who wrote (40276)	1/18/2005 1:26:07 PM
From: abuelita	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 104191

actually, we're not bad off. we've not sustained any damage - yet. Flooding causes damage, closures across Lower Mainland and Island Joel Baglole Vancouver Sun Tuesday, January 18, 2005 The Lower Mainland and Vancouver Island experienced heavy flooding Monday as more than 127 millimetres -- five inches --of rain fell in some areas over a 24-hour period. Roads were closed and basements were flooded from West Vancouver to Port Renfrew and Richmond to Abbotsford, as catch basins and ditches overflowed, dykes ruptured and sump pumps broke down under heavy rainfall that began Sunday night and continued unabated through Monday. The heavy rain is forecast to continue for the rest of the week, increasing the likelihood of even more flooding, said a spokesman with Environment Canada. "It's been raining hard here all day long," said Jay Teichroeb, a spokesman for the City of Abbotsford, who noted that yards and fields in and around Abbotsford flooded when drainage ditches spilled over with rainwater and melting snow. "If this rain continues we'll be flooded out and have to start closing roads." Several major streets were closed in parts of Vancouver, Surrey and Langley. A dispatcher with the City of Burnaby said the flooding was overwhelming. "There's flooding everywhere," said the dispatcher. "There isn't one area that isn't flooded." Lambert Chu, deputy director of engineering with the City of Burnaby, said the city was forced to close the Gilmour on-ramps leading to the Trans-Canada Highway at Still Creek Ave. because the ramps were "underwater." Elsewhere, the Vancouver park board closed the Stanley Park seawall due to "torrential rain," and the SkyTrain experienced temporary disruptions throughout Monday because of the water. City officials across the Lower Mainland blamed flooding on heavy rain that combined with melting snow to overwhelm drainage systems. Compounding the problem is the fact that the ground in many areas is frozen from the cold weather of the last two weeks, and, as a result, very little water is being absorbed. In many cases, water is running off yards and fields and into roadways. High tides have added to the problem. On Monday, the tide was out for only about six hours, from noon until 6 p.m., said Environment Canada. "There's not much we can do about road flooding in weather like this," said Gerry Mckinnon, manager of operations in the engineering department of the City of Surrey. An Environment Canada spokesman said 139.7 millimetres -- 5.5 inches -- of rain fell in Port Renfrew on Vancouver Island between Sunday and Monday, while West Vancouver got 101 -- four inches -- and other areas such as Surrey and Chilliwack each experienced more than 50.8 millimetres -- two inches -- in 24 hours. "If a storm comes over a few days, we will have no problem handling it. However, if that same amount of water comes in a few hours, then we'll see flooding," said Dave Boyko, manager of sewer operations with the City of Vancouver. "It's hard to avoid flooding if you get more than two inches of rain in a day," he added. However, despite the downpour, no records had been broken by late Monday afternoon. The 24-hour rainfall record for January is 68 millimetres -- 2.6 inches -- at Vancouver International Airport. By Monday night 51 millimeters -- 2.007 inches --had fallen at the airport, said the Environment Canada spokesman. Environment Canada was forecasting more rain across southern B.C. Monday night and Tuesday, and as much as 51 millimetres was forecast for the Lower Mainland and Vancouver Island Wednesday. The rain is not expected to taper off and stop until Friday afternoon, said an Environment Canada spokesman. Engineering departments in various municipalities dispatched crews to clear catch basins and drainage ditches of debris such as plastic bags, leaves and ice. Work crews also closed roads in areas of heavy flooding and erected pylons and lights to direct motorists around puddles or force them to slow down. In addition, some municipalities, such as Surrey, are making sand and bags available to the public so that they can erect their own sandbag dykes around their homes or yards. "We're not floating away just yet," said Ted Townsend, a spokesman for the City of Richmond. "But the flooding is widespread throughout the community." - - - AREAS OF FLOODING AND ROAD CLOSURES: Vancouver 1. Kent Ave. and Marine Drive 2. 4th Ave and Macdonald 3. Willingdon exit and Entrance to #1 Highway 4. Cassiar and Hastings Surrey 5. King George Highway at 128th St. 6. 168th St. between 64th Ave. and Fraser Highway 7. 88th Ave. bet. 168th & 176th St. 8. 148th St. at 66 Ave. 9. 110 Ave. at 124 St. 10. Bridgeview Drive and 112 Ave. 11. 136 Street and 116 Ave. Langley 12. 196 St. at 60th Ave. and Fraser Highway Abbotsford 13. Sumas Prairie and #1 Highway 14. Vedder River Burnaby 15. Still Creek Ave. and Willingdon Ave. 16. Wiggins St. and Marshland Ave. Richmond 17. North end of Gilbert Road 18. Main roads in City Centre © The Vancouver Sun 2005