King Tide/Storm Combo Just A Preview For Vancouver - Storm Surge Hit 5.5 Meters

[hatrack]

METRO VANCOUVER - The combination of a king tide and a surging storm that pummelled parts of Vancouver’s iconic seawall Monday are symptomatic of what climate change and rising sea levels could mean for the region, according to an expert.

Oceanographer Susan Allen said that in coming years, the flooding seen in parts of Metro Vancouver’s waterfront could occur outside a “coincidence” like Monday’s heavy wind and rain that combined with the so-called king tides, which are nearing the end of their month-long peak in British Columbia.

“In the future we won’t have to have quite so high a tide at the time of a storm surge to get exactly what we had today because the water will be a little higher,” Allen said. “The important thing is “and.” “If you get global warming and a big tide and a storm surge then we (have) problems.”

King tides, also known as a perigean spring tide, are formed twice a year when the gravitational pull of the sun and moon reinforce each other. Usual water levels at high tide are 3.4 metres to 4.3 metres in the Vancouver area, but a king tide can reach five metres, as it did (almost 5.5 m) at 9 a.m. Monday. A significantly lower high tide will occur Tuesday and continue to decrease this week, according to Fisheries and Oceans Canada.

EDIT

http://www.vancouversun.com/Metro+Vancouver+storm+surge+climate+change+preview+expert+says+with+video/7709174/story.html

[pscot]

1. High water blocked several streets in my little town

and seagulls were paddling around a kids park near the beach. The county built a berm along one waterfront road, but it flooded anyway. Plans for the coal port at Cherry Point are still on track.