Hundreds of homes in southeastern British Columbia remain on evacuation alert as officials warn local water supplies could be contaminated.
Passmore and Slocan B.C. in the West Kootenay area
Close to 400 homes in Passmore, Slocan Park and Grand Forks, communities in the West Kootenay area, remain on evacuation alert due to rising rivers caused by downpours and melting snowpacks.
People from about 50 homes in Passmore and Slocan Park were ordered out on Saturday and Sunday. Most stayed with friends and family, while others stayed at the community hall in Passmore.
RCMP have issued warnings about surging creeks in the region after a Penticton man fell into the city's Ellis Creek on Sunday. Searchers have yet to find Joshua Morgan, 21.
Government officials have also warned people in the Nelson area to restrict sewage and septic tank system use to minimize the chance of water contamination.
RCMP have issued warnings about surging creeks in the region. (CBC)
The province is advising residents to be aware of the taste, colour and smell of the water they are drinking. Water should be boiled if it appears irregular.
Higher-than-normal temperatures in the southern B.C. Interior means the "snowpack is coming off almost all at once," provincial Environment Minister Barry Penner said.
His ministry issued a flood watch last Thursday for much of the southern Interior, covering the West Kootenay and East Kootenay, Boundary, Columbia, Okanagan and South Thompson regions.