Heavy rain to worsen ongoing flooding in western Canada

Recent heavy rain across the Canadian province of Alberta has led to widespread flooding, and AccuWeather meteorologists are now monitoring a new potent storm that can bring more heavy rain to the region through early this week.

Since the beginning of May, much of Alberta and eastern British Columbia have had above-average rainfall, leading to saturated ground and rivers running high.

The storm that is expected to impact the region into early this week can produce several rounds of rain. The heaviest rain will fall across eastern British Columbia and into western and northern Alberta.

Widespread rainfall totals of 50-100 mm (2-4 inches) are forecast across the region through Tuesday. An AccuWeather Local StormMax™ of 150 mm (6 inches) is expected along the eastern slopes of the Rockies.

The heaviest rain is anticipated to fall into Monday.

Smaller streams and rivers can quickly fill with water and rise out of their banks as the rain falls into early this week. With soil already saturated in many areas, flooding may occur more rapidly than normal.

This rain, combined with snowmelt, can also lead to flooding along the larger rivers across the region. River flooding like this can persist for days, and even weeks, after the rain has ended.

Heavy thunderstorms that developed over the weekend increased the risk for flooding in southern areas of western Canada over the weekend. A storm that erupted over Calgary on Saturday caused hail damage and flooding roads.

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Heavy rain this spring has also caused problems with planting across the region. According to a report from CTV News, farmers are struggling to get summer crops in the ground. Oversaturated soil has made it impossible to plant crops due to fears of equipment getting stuck in the muddy soil.

This next round of rain will further worsen the problem and could contribute to some crops failing to grow as fields remain waterlogged.

Fort McMurray, Alberta, has already received its normal rainfall for June during just the first 10 days of the month.

Heavier rain has fallen elsewhere, like in Dawson Creek, British Columbia, where 141 mm (5.55 inches) of rain has been reported this month. Additional rain into early this week can put the town at double its normal June rainfall with half of the month still to go.

While heavy rain will come to an end, lighter rain may linger into the middle of the week. A gradual trend towards drier weather is possible later in June which will help to dry out saturated ground and allow area rivers and streams to recede.

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