Banff monitoring Bow River for flooding amid heavy downpour, snowpack melt

A high streamflow advisory remains in effect Monday for the Bow River as this year’s larger-than-normal snowpack melt, combined with heavy rainfall, has raised water levels in Banff National Park.

Over the weekend, the town of Banff closed playgrounds, bench spots and low-lying trails near the river due to overflow and pooling.

Sports fields have also been closed to help protect the turf.

While there is a flood watch upstream near Lake Louise, so far the advisory closer to Banff has not been upgraded thanks to lighter rainfall than was originally forecasted.

Cloud cover and the late start to rain on Saturday evening may have slowed the snow melt. However, Banff’s mayor says the town has still taken precautions.

“We have deployed our dam device and we have not yet had the need to fill it, but that has been deployed in an effort to be able to protect a couple of museums that we have, as well as residential areas,” Banff Mayor Corrie Di Manno said.

“We haven’t had to deploy that yet. And of course, there’s been sandbagging in these low-lying areas. ”

Although a flood warning hasn’t been issued, DiManno is urging both locals and visitors to take caution.

“Please stay away from the river bank as conditions can change and the river line is changing rapidly as well,” Di Manno said.

“The river is moving really fast with all sorts of debris in there that you can’t see because it’s so muddy.”

Banff has published a list of advisories on its website to help keep people safe.

The list includes staying off and away from the river. It adds that calving elk may migrate to recreational grounds to escape flooding areas.

As a precaution, it is recommended that people keep a distance of three tour buses away from the elk as they may be dangerous.

Despite the current heavy downpours, optimism is shining through for DiManno.

“Once the sun comes out, things dry up just as quickly. So, we’re really looking forward to some sunnier days ahead. We would ask visitors to plan ahead when they come to Banff this summer,” she said.

Environment Canada predicts total rainfall amounts of 40 to 60 mm is expected in Banff by the time the rain tapers off Tuesday evening.

Alberta environment’s rivers forecast said the elevated water levels could cause groundwater issues in Canmore and Exshaw.