Abbotsford mayor 'extremely concerned' about potential for flooding from U.S. this weekend

Abbotsford Mayor Henry Braun says his city remains "extremely concerned" about the possibility of floodwaters from the United States arriving this weekend.

Abbotsford Mayor Henry Braun says his city remains "extremely concerned" about the possibility of floodwaters from the United States arriving this weekend.

During a news conference Saturday afternoon, Braun said he spoke with officials in Whatcom County, Wash. Saturday morning to discuss flooding from the Nooksack River.

He said the U.S. officials told him it's "challenging" to predict how severe the flooding from the river will be during the current storm because of infrastructure damage and sediment buildup.

Braun said he's confident Abbotsford's dike and pump infrastructure can handle the 120 millimetres of rain that are forecast to fall on the city by Sunday morning. He's less certain how the city will fare if the Nooksack floods - and how severe the Nooksack flooding might be.

"We have done everything we can in a very short period of time," Braun said.

Washington officials have warned that the Nooksack is expected to overflow its banks and flood the town of Everson this weekend.

Floodwaters may also make their way to the U.S. city of Sumas, which would then mean more flooding north of the border in Abbotsford's Sumas Prairie.