Okanagan Lake levels reach 'full pool' with delays in B.C's spring thaw

Lakeshore residents in British Columbia's Okanagan region are the latest to be warned about the potential for flooding.

A statement from the City of Penticton says Okanagan Lake has reached full pool, which a Ministry of Forests fact sheet says is the preferred level at the end of spring runoff.

The lake is far from the record levels set during flooding in 2017, but with this year's run-off delayed by cool weather and Environment Canada warning of thundershowers, low-lying residents in Penticton have been told to prepare for high water.

The advice comes as the River Forecast Centre lifts high streamflow advisories for the Okanagan, Similkameen, Boundary and Columbia regions, but maintains them for waterways in the east and west Kootenay, Thompson and along the Fraser River from Quesnel to the ocean.

High streamflow advisories alerting residents to possible rapid increases in river levels, have also been added for the Bella Coola and Dean rivers on the central coast and for the Bulkley River and its tributaries north and south of Smithers.

A flood warning covering the Liard River and its tributaries between Fort Nelson and Watson Lake in northeastern B.C., remains unchanged, as does the high streamflow advisory for most waterways across the extreme northwest corner of the province.