River Update - High Waters Return To Southern Alberta

The wet spring is continuing into a damp summer as southern Alberta is experiencing sustaining precipitation and, along with it, a return to high streamflow advisories, flood watches and warnings.

A high streamflow advisory has been issued across both the Oldman and Bow river basins from the Eastern Slopes to the confluence with the South Saskatchewan River.

A flood warning has been issued for the Elbow River with water levels nearly tripling in the last 72 hours and activating for the first time the Springbank off-stream reservoir.

However, the Elbow has peaked as of Monday evening.

Further south, the MD of Willow Creek is issued an advisory late Monday to landowners downstream of the Oldman dam where outflows have risen from 100 cubic metres a second to nearly 500 m³/s in the past day.

Parks Canada is also warning visitors to Waterton National Park to be mindful of rising water levels.

Streamflows on the South Saskatchewan River at Medicine Hat are anticipated to rise to around 1,000 m³/s or higher in the coming days with releases at the Bassano Dam on the Bow reaching over 500 m³/s early Tuesday morning.

Adding to the upstream dam releases are outflows from the Belly and St. Mary rivers which have also seen significant river level increases.

Southern Alberta’s three largest reservoirs - Oldman, St. Mary and McGregor - are all at or near capacity.