Heavy rain and melting snow topple roofs, raise river levels

At least three roofs in Metro Vancouver gave way to the weight of melting snow Tuesday amid heavy rainfall and warmer temperatures. But no one was injured.

The roof of a home under renovation in east Vancouver collapsed in the morning, but there was no one inside when it happened.

In Burnaby, the roof of a big warehouse imploded into a pile of rubble shortly after noon, crushing a five-tonne truck and an employee's car.

"Luckily, our neighbour didn't get hurt at all," said Tony Hang of Altech Aluminum. "It [was] caused by the snow pile and it just collapsed."

In Port Moody, the combination of downpour and melting snow caused the roof of a townhouse to buckle.

"I'm just waiting to find out what the structural engineer is going to say. Hopefully I can stay in here. Everything I own is in this place," homeowner Lori Leonard said in the afternoon.

The heavy rain also kept hundreds of municipal workers busy clearing catch basins, wheelchair rampsand bus stops of slush andsnow.

Surrey deployed more than 150 workers Tuesday, while about 800 workers were tasked to do the job in Vancouver.

Potholes abound

Meanwhile, potholes are popping up in the Lower Mainland, causing headaches to drivers.

The Oak Street Bridge linking Vancouver and Richmond is the worst it has ever been, said Willem Jellema, manager of bridge and structural engineering with the provincial government.

"The water that is trapped in there gets worked by the traffic, and next thing you know, you have it growing to the point where it pops and you end up with that hole in the asphalt," Jellema said Tuesday.

Jellema said three weeks of freezing, thawing and refreezing makes the potholes grow.

Vancouver is scrambling to plug the holes with temporary patches until workers can return with a permanent fix, said Murray Wightman, the city's manager of street operations.

Vancouver had three crews out fixing potholes Tuesday and will deploy five crews Wednesday, Wightman said.

Drivers are advised to slow down when passing through potholes or their vehicles could suffer serious damage, Stephen King of Kal Tire said.

"You could be looking at a new rim and a new tire. It could also cause some front-end and suspension damage," King said.

The best option is to avoid the pothole, he said.

River levels rising

Environment Canada is forecasting another 10 centimetres of rain in the next 48 hours, raising concerns about flooding in rivers.

The Nicomekl River, whichsurfaces inLangley and travels west through Surrey, is one to watch, according to the River Forecast Centreat the B.C. Environment Ministry.

The centre has issued a "high streamflow advisory" for the south coast, including Metro Vancouver, the Lower Mainland, the Fraser Valley, Howe Sound and Vancouver Island.

A high streamflow advisory means river levels are rising or expected to rise rapidly, but no major flooding is expected. Minor flooding in low-lying areas is possible.

"It only takes water a few inches deep.That willwash a person away, and the survival time is not very long. This water is barely above freezing temperature," said Allan Chapman, head of the River Forecast Centre.