The Parksville Qualicum Beach area is recovering after waters from heavy rainfall threatened to engulf parts of the region.
The east coast of Vancouver Island from Nanaimo to Campbell River was on flood watch by the provincial government’s River Forecast Centre, including the Englishman River near Parksville and the Little Qualicum River near Qualicum Beach.
People across PQB shared photos of flooded backyards and washed out roads as temperatures rose, snow melted and rivers ran wild.
The flood watch remains, but the river waters are now calming.
READ MORE: Roads flood during winter storm in Parksville Qualicum Beach
“Both Englishman and Little Qualicum Rivers have been dropping steadily since peak flows hit yesterday (Feb. 1), and they should continue to drop further,” said George Roman with the River Forecast Centre.
Now that the rainfall has ended, flows are expected to gradually recede throughout the rest of the weekend, according to a release from the centre.
However, waters are still running high and people should take care when around fast-flowing bodies of water.
“The public is advised to stay clear of the fast-flowing rivers and potentially unstable riverbanks during the high-river-level period,” said the centre in a release.
READ MORE: PQB News readers share photos of flooding in Parksville Qualicum Beach
A bit more rain is in the forecast for today (Sunday Feb. 2), with Environment Canada calling for 40 per cent chance of showers in Qualicum Beach.
Things should dry out on Monday Feb. 3, as the forecast calls for a mainly sunny day, with a high of 4C.
Monday night brings a 30 per cent chance of snow, and in true February form, the rest of the week looks to be mostly rainy.
