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A handful of Kelowna homes are already on evacuation alert, while the District of Peachland declared a local State of Emergency to deal with a landslide that sent water flowing over Highway 97 and took out power lines. An evacuation order is in effect for homes in the area.

In all, across B.C., there are 17 local states of emergency, 21 evacuation orders affecting 187 homes, 22 evacuation alerts affecting 585 homes, and 13 local authorities and 10 First Nations have activated emergency-operations centres, said Duffy.

Flood watches and high streamflow advisories are in effect for the West Kettle and Granby rivers, and the Bulkley River.

Photo by Cole Wagner / Merritt Herald. / PNG

The average snowpack across the province is 168 per cent of normal with extremely high snowpacks in Nicola, Okanagan, Similkameen and West and East Kootenay.

The snow index for the Okanagan is 206 per cent of normal, which is the highest observed snowpack dating to 1980, while the Upper Fraser West is 264 per cent of normal.

“Current flow on the Fraser River at Hope … is near or above the maximum recorded flow for this early in the season,” according to a snowpack report issued Monday.

Above-average temperatures over the past two weeks have accelerated the melt and those conditions are expected to continue and to drive flooding across the Interior.

Flood watches remain in effect across the central Interior for the Bonaparte River, Baker Creek, Nicola River, Guichon Creek and the Coldwater River and tributaries around Cache Creek, Merritt, Williams Lake and Quesnel.

Flood warnings are also maintained for the Nazko and West Road rivers in the Cariboo region west of Quesnel, where about 120 properties have been on evacuation order for more than a week.

Highway 8 west of Merritt has been closed by flooding at 10 Mile Bridge and highway officials say the water continues to rise at that location.

rshore@postmedia.com

– With files from The Canadian Press

Photo by Cole Wagner / Merritt Herald / PNG

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