As a transplanted British Columbian, Jesse Mason views the extreme and shifting weather patterns unfolding in his native province with a high level of concern.
This is not a game. Regarding climate change, that much is abundantly clear. Even at a few 10ths of a degree shy of the aspirational ceiling of 1.5 C of warming above pre-industrial levels, the often overwhelming impacts of extreme weather driven by the changing climate have hit hard in North America and beyond.
The successive storms that brutalized southern British Columbia with floods and slides caused by record amounts of rainfall were declared over on Thursday, December 2, 2021, but now the cleanup and costly rebuild lie ahead, says the public safety minister.
Flood warnings were issued on Wednesday, December 1, 2021, for several major rivers in British Columbia as a federal scientist says record-setting rainfall and alpine temperatures are consistent with climate change.
Fuel rationing in parts of British Columbia was extended on Monday, November 29, 2021, for another two weeks until Dec. 14 to allow crews to bring the Trans Mountain pipeline back online after a series of devastating storms, floods and slides in the southern part of the province.
Residents of another handful of properties in Abbotsford, B.C., were ordered to evacuate late on Sunday, November 28, 2021, night while some others were placed on evacuation of alert due to the continuing flood threat.
The House of Commons held an emergency debate on Wednesday, November 24, 2021, night on the devastating floods in British Columbia amid increased attention to how ill-prepared the country is for the effects of a changing climate.
B.C. is battening down the hatches as a wave of heavy winds and rain is predicted right behind a recent storm that washed out communities, critical roadways and triggered fatal mudslides.
As some evacuees from devastating flooding in British Columbia were allowed to return home on Tuesday, November 23, 2021, the mayor of Abbotsford said preparations were progressing for another storm that's expected later this week.
Environment and Climate Change Canada is warning that more rainfall is expected in B.C. this week and it will likely affect areas that are still recovering from last week's floods.
The federal government promised to expedite employment insurance applications and ease travel restrictions at British Columbia's borders on Sunday, November 21, 2021, among a host of measures meant to help residents of the flood-ravaged province recover from recent storms and weather new ones expected in the days ahead.
Senior government officials in British Columbia warned residents on Saturday, November 20, 2021, to brace for another round of weekend rainstorms even as the death toll from floods triggered by the last round of extreme weather continued to rise.
As rescue and relief efforts ramp up in areas hardest hit by flooding and mudslides, the B.C. government is expected to provide more information today about the state of emergency it has declared.
Similar scenes have played out across southern B.C. in recent days as the province grapples with an unprecedented storm that flooded Merritt, Princeton, and much of the Fraser Valley under metres of frigid, dirty water.