Vanderhoof, B.C.-  The District of Vanderhoof has  scheduled a second volunteer sandbagging event  to help protect the community from  the rising  Nechako river. A volunteer sandbagging event is set for Sunday at 2 p.m.  Volunteers are  asked to arrive at the Arena (back parking lot) at 2 p.m. to register and receive a sandbagging assignment. Volunteers are encouraged to bring their own shovels/gloves.   There will be a BBQ  after the sandbagging event  at the area, hosted by the Vanderhoof Children’s Theatre

The District of Vanderhoof is in phase one of emergency operations  planning,  “That  means we are  in a watch and see mode” says  District information officer Tom Bulmer.  He says  steps are being taken to  prepare to  open  an Emergency Operations Centre.

About 100 people turned out to a meeting  in Vanderhoof last evening, to hear the latest water flow info from Rio Tinto Alcan.  The news was mixed,  with  Rio Tinto saying  there will be high levels of water in the Nechako River  for a while.

The Nechako River  in Vanderhoof is expected to reach flows of between  650 and 700  cubic meters  per second.  That  is well above the levels recorded  for the  last major flood which  occurred in 2007.   According to the  River Forecast Centre,  the levels could  hit 650 cubic metres per second as early as tomorrow, yet a flood warning has not been issued.  The River Forecast Centre has maintained a  flood watch for the Nechako at Vanderhoof and the Nautley River in  Fort Fraser.  Further downstream, in Prince George,  the  River Forecast Centre   is maintaining a  high streamflow advisory.

Residents of Vanderhoof have been  busy  stacking  sand bags  along low lying river  front properties.  Mayor Gerry Thiessen  told 250News earlier this week  gabion  baskets have already been deployed  along those areas at highest risk.  A volunteer sandbagging event was held Wednesday evening, and a second one is set for Sunday at 2 p.m.  Volunteers are  asked to arrive at the Arena (back parking lot) at 2 p.m. to register and receive a sandbagging assignment. Volunteers are encouraged to bring their own shovels/gloves.   There will be a BBQ  after the sandbagging event  at the area, hosted by the Vanderhoof Children’s Theatre.

It is difficult to predict with any great accuracy,  what  impact the weather will have.  The River Forecast  Centre says  an upper low system  may stall over the region and because  the  weather system is unstable,  there  could be  heavy downpours from  thunderstorms.

The River Forecast  Centre  says flows on the Nautley, Stellako River, and Francois Lake  could  rise 3 to 5 cm over the weekend  depending on the amount of rain  that is dumped  in the headwaters of  the three bodies of water.