Abbotsford experiences a variety of weather related events, including extreme heat, wind storms, snow storms, heavy rains, hail and fog. These weather events may result in a wide range of community impacts ranging from temporary power and utility outages, to frozen water lines, and closed roads. Below are some community safety tips on the types of occurrences that are likely to occur in Abbotsford.
Rain and Stormy Weather
Here are a number of tips and actions people can take to prepare for rainy and windy weather:
- Strong winds can down trees (especially those weakened by drought conditions) and power lines.
- Everyone should be mindful of the danger of falling trees.
- During a power outage or other disruption to infrastructure, you may need to cope at home for a prolonged period without access to amenities like electricity or tap water. To prepare for this, build a household emergency kit with enough non-perishable food, water and supplies to support your household for a week or longer. Make sure it is stored in an easily accessible location that everyone knows about.
- Protect your home from potential floods by clearing out your gutters, maintaining perimeter drains, making sure downspouts are far enough away from your home and checking nearby stormwater drains on your street are free of leaves and blockage.
- Store valuables and important items or documents in watertight containers or in higher places, such as on a tall shelf or upper floor.
- Develop an emergency plan. Knowing what to do will reduce anxiety and help keep you focused and safe.
- Know your neighbours who may require extra care and check on them.
- If your lights go out, check to see whether BC Hydro is already aware of the outage by visiting: bchydro.com
- If your outage is not listed, call 1 800 BCHYDRO (1 800 224 9376), or *49376 (*HYDRO) on your mobile phone. You can also log in to your BC Hydro account to report an outage online.
- Torrential rains can cause overland flooding and creeks and rivers to quickly overflow.
- Avoid these water channels because they tend to fill up quickly. Riverbanks that look stable can be eroded beneath the surface, causing unstable ground that could collapse.
- Keep children and pets away from stream banks and watch for changing conditions, particularly if you live in low-lying areas or near waterways.
- Drive carefully and never attempt to drive through floodwater.
- The depth of water is not always obvious. The road bed may be washed out under the water and sink holes could exist but be unseen.
- Fifteen centimetres (six inches) of water will reach the bottom of most passenger cars, causing loss of control and possible stalling, while 30.5 centimetres (a foot) of water will float many vehicles.
- If a car begins to flood, abandon it quickly and head to higher ground.
More Resources
During stormy weather, residents may have additional tree branches and yard waste that require disposal. These items can be disposed of as part of the City’s weekly compost and yard waste collection service. Please follow the guidelines below to ensure your material is collected.
- Branches can be tied in bundles or placed in compostable waste containers or paper yard bags
- Branch bundles can be up to 1m (3.3’) in length and up to 60 cm (2’) in diameter
- Bundles must be tied with cotton or natural string/twine
- Branches and stumps can be up to 15cm (6”) in diameter
- Up to ten items (combination of containers, bags or bundles) will be collected each week
Materials that do not meet these specifications cannot be accepted with the curbside collection. During storm season disposal volumes increase and curbside collection services may extend into the early evenings, so please leave your material at the curb.
- Tree branches and yard waste can also be dropped off at the Net Zero Waste composting facility located at 5050 Gladwin Road.
- Residents that receive the City’s curbside collection service can use one of the free yard waste coupons that were mailed out with the annual collection calendar. A gate charge will apply for those without a coupon.
- Additional charges may apply for larger diameter stumps and branches.
Larger stumps and branches are often too large to be picked up through curbside collection and are best handled by a tree service contractor. Residents can also bring these items to Net Zero Waste for a charge. Other storm-related debris such as damaged fences and building material can be taken to one of the following transfer stations:
- First Class Transfer Station located at 34613 Vye Road
- Waste Connections of Canada Transfer Station located at 34321 Industrial Way
Winter Safety
During winter conditions, the priority routes are maintained first. The priority routes include high volume and strategic arterial and collector roads, transit routes, school zones and major access to hillside areas. If you don’t have to drive, please delay driving until weather conditions improve. Clearing priority routes is more effective when fewer vehicles are on the road.
Please avoid parking on the road. Abandoned vehicles or vehicles obstructing roadways will be towed without notice to allow for snow clearing operations to continue. The towing costs will be the responsibility of the vehicle owners.
Please do not attempt to stop City vehicles that are sanding, salting or plowing. To request snow clearing service, please contact the Operations Yard at 604-853-5485, Monday to Friday, between 8:00 am and 4:30 pm. We queue all the requests and respond ASAP based on priorities. During afterhours and on the weekends, please call the after hours emergency line at 604-864-5552.
Per the Good Neighbor Bylaw No. 1256-2003, residents are responsible for clearing their own driveways and sidewalks in front of their properties. Please do not plow snow from private properties onto the public roadways. Put shoveled snow onto your yard. Extra snow on the roads and sidewalks is hazardous for pedestrians and vehicles.
If your curbside garbage, recycling and compostable waste is not collected, please set your material out on the next regularly scheduled collection day. If collection is delayed, you will be allowed double your regular garbage allowance. For more information, please contact the Engineering Operations Division at 604-853-5485.
The City of Abbotsford maintains and manages approximately 910 km of paved roadways. Severe weather conditions can seriously impact the City from a social, environmental and economic perspective with an unsafe road network.
Frozen Water Lines
The main reason for frozen lines is due to the depth of the water service pipe. Shallow depth pipes are most often found in older neighbourhoods or where owners have regraded their properties, removing soil cover. Insufficient insulation near and around internal pipes can also cause frozen pipes.
The signs of frozen pipes are:
- No water or very little water coming out of the faucet. Check all faucets in your home.
- Frost on your internal pipes, including on your main shut-off valve.
- Flooding – frozen water can cause pipes to burst and cause flooding inside your home
Partial water service indicates that a pipe is frozen somewhere in the house. A complete lack of water service can be the result of a frozen water meter or a frozen pipe leading from the water main in the street to the house, call the City for assistance if this is the case. A meter or water pipe that feels extremely cold is most likely frozen. It's important to clear frozen blockages as soon as possible to minimize the danger of pipes bursting in some inaccessible spot and causing damage inside your house.
- If your house or basement is flooding, turn off the main shut-off valve inside your home. If you believe your pipes have frozen, turn off water at the main shut-off valve and call a plumber
- Check all other faucets in your home to find out if you have additional frozen pipes. If one pipe freezes, others may also freeze. When in doubt, always call a plumber.
- Once you have checked all the items listed above, including contacting a plumber, but continue to have no water please call the City.
- If you have no water at any tap/location in your home, please contact the City for further assistance.
- You can try the steps outlined below to help thaw frozen pipes. In most instances, it is best to call a licensed plumber.
- Moving water prevents ice from forming all the way through the pipe and helps maintain the flow of non-frozen water. Keep a trickle of water running from the highest faucet in your house. The trickle should be size of a pencil point. You will be billed for the water used, but this procedure may help prevent more costly repairs resulting from broken pipes. Repair costs associated with frozen pipes are the responsibility of the homeowner.
- If a water pipe has frozen and burst, turn off the water at the main shut-off valve in the house. Open a nearby faucet slightly so the pipe can drain as it thaws
- Thaw pipes by applying hot air from a hair dryer, electric heater or by using a heating pad. Do not use electrical appliances in areas of standing water because you could be electrocuted. Never use hot water or a blowtorch on a frozen pipe or water meter.
- Frozen underground pipes running into the house may require the application of electric current or other thawing devices. A licensed plumber must address this problem. If frozen underground lines outside the house are an annual problem, consider lowering them in the spring to a point below the frost line.
- Check all other faucets in your home to find out if you have additional frozen pipes. If one pipe freezes, others may also freeze. When in doubt, always call a plumber.
- Look for cold draughts
- Check around your home for areas where water supply lines are in unheated areas and take measures to prevent the flow of cold air in these areas.
- Common locations include: the basement, crawl spaces, attics, garages and under kitchen and bathroom cabinets.
- A hot water supply line can freeze just like a cold water supply line if water is not running through the pipe and the water temperatures becomes cold. Both hot and cold water pipes in these drafty areas should be insulated.
- Insulate pipes
- Consider installing specific products made to insulate water pipes like a pipe sleeve or installing UL-listed heat tape, heat cable or similar materials on exposed pipes.
- Find your water shut-off valve
- Every homeowner should know where the main water shut-off valve is in their house and learn how to use it.
- For most homes the water main shut-off valve is located at the point where the water line comes into your home, which usually in your basement.
- If you live in a condo or townhome, call your management company or condo corporation to find out where the shut off value is for your unit.
- Protect garage pipes
- If you have plumbing in your garage, keep your garage door closed when it's very cold. Pipes in unheated garages or basements should be insulated.
- Seal your home from winter
- Stop the drafts! Repair broken windows, check your doors and insulate areas that allow cold exterior air to enter.
- Be prepared when travelling
- If you are leaving your home for an extended period of time in the winter, set your thermostat at 15 degrees or higher, and have someone check your house every second day and have them check for signs of freezing.
- Winterize outside faucets
- Make sure the water line to outside faucets (such as your garden hose) is turned off, aa your hoses are disconnected, and the line is drained
Extreme Heat and Hot Weather
When faced with heat events in Abbotsford during the summer, it’s important we all stay safe. Following a few key tips will help ensure you and your family members stay healthy and cooled down during a summer heat wave, sometimes referred to as extreme heat.
Heat warnings are issued by Environment Canada and are defined as a period of three or more days in a row when the maximum temperature is 32°C. When there is a heat warning, residents are advised to follow the following tips from Fraser Health Authority to avoid heat exhaustion.
Check on others: Remember to check regularly on family members and neighbours, particular seniors and those who are housebound. People living alone are at high risk of severe heat related illness. Check regularly on older people, and those who are unable to leave their homes, for signs of heat-related illness.
Stay hydrated: Drink cool non-alcoholic beverages (preferably water) irrespective of your activity intake. Don’t wait until you are thirsty. Seniors, people with medical conditions such as heart problems and breathing problems, athletes, and children should take extra care to stay hydrated and cool during extended periods of heat.
Keep cool: Plan ahead and stay out of the sun as much as possible. Plan activities for the early morning and after sunset. If you are out during the day, wear sunscreen, dress in lightweight clothing and find shade in parks with tree shade. Peak hours during a heat wave are between 12 and 4pm. Avoid strenuous activities. Never leave any children or pets behind inside parked vehicles.
- Seek out an air-conditioned facility (such as a shopping centre, library, community centre, restaurant, or a residence of friends or family). Some community facilities include:
- Matsqui Recreation Centre at 3106 Clearbrook Rd
- Abbotsford Recreation Centre at 2499 McMillan Rd
- The Reach Gallery Museum at 32388 Veterans Way
- Clearbrook Library at 32320 George Ferguson Way
- Abbotsford Library at 33355 Bevan Ave
- Mount Lehman Library at 5875 Mount Lehman Road
- Use public splash pools, spray parks or pools or take a cool bath or shower.
- Spud Murphy Spray Park at 32285 Hillcrest Avenue
- Mill Lake Spray Park at 2310 Emerson Street
- Shadbolt Park Spray Park at 36086 Shadbolt Avenue
Hot weather can be a safety concern.
Make sure you’re prepared and play it smart and safe when the temperatures soar.
- Drink plenty of cool water! Drink before you become thirsty especially if you are sweating!
- Young children are especially vulnerable to high temperatures. Ensure lots of water, shade and stay cool.
- Wear a hat! Use sunscreen of SPF 15 or higher and apply every hour or after you get wet.
- Leave your pet at home! Don’t leave your pet locked inside your vehicle, provide them with lots of shade and fresh water. Take care when walking them on hot cement.
- Elderly people should take extra care. Check on your neighbours and friends.
- Stay indoors where it’s cool (malls, recreation centres, libraries). Schedule activities for early morning or late evening when it’s cooler.
- Avoid strenuous activity during the hottest parts of the day, find some shade or cool places to play.
- Seek out an air-conditioned facility (such as a shopping centre, library, community centre, restaurant, or a residence of friends or family). Some community facilities include:
Cooling Centres are part of the City’s Extreme Weather Response Plan throughout the summer and include tents for shade, water, misting fans and cooling supplies. Cooling Centres run from 1 – 5 p.m. on days when the temperature exceeds 32 degrees for consecutive days and are located at:
- Seven Oaks Alliance Church parking lot at 2575 Gladwin Road
- City-owned parking lot at 2495 West Railway Street
Additional cooling centres are opened as needed.
View the top three ways to protect yourself during an extreme heat event and information on heat related health risks for seniors, children and athletes who exercise in the heat.
Weather Alerts
- Fraser Valley Weather Alerts
- Metro Vancouver Weather Alert
- Public Weather Alerts for British Columbia
- Special Weather Statements
- Abbotsford Weather Forecast
Air Quality Alerts
- Air Quality Health Index - Provincial Summary
- Air Quality - Central Fraser Valley - Abbotsford
- Fraser Health - Air Quality
Safety Tips and Resources
Living with Wildlife
Humans can be very attractive to a variety of animals and insects. Our garbage, gardens, pet food, bird feeders, barbeques, bags of seed, garden bulbs and composters all produce an irresistible buffet of odours to our wild and domesticated animal friends.
From insects and rodents to birds and large mammals, attracting the wrong species to your property can cause problems ranging from minor property damage to far more serious outcomes.
Preventing and avoiding attractants is the only way to avoid costly damages and spare animal lives. Please take a moment to identify any possible attractants on your property and secure them appropriately.
Fraser Health has local Environmental Health Officers available to provide assistance and information regarding infestation, identification and control of common household pests, such as insects and rodents. In Abbotsford, call the Health Protection Office 604-870-7900.
Dangerous Wildlife sightings and encounters should be reported to the BC Conservation Officer Service, toll-free at 1-877-952-7277.
- The Provincial Wildsafe BC program provides tips for preventing problem encounters with bears.
- The Wild Safe BC website provides tips for reducing wildlife conflicts for numerous animals including bears, cougar, coyotes, deers, and raccoons, as well as providing wildlife reports on the Wildlife Alert Reporting Program (W.A.R.P.) website.
- The Wildlife Rehabilitators Network of British Columbia's website provides tips on how to deal with wild animals and listing of rehabilitators in British Columbia.
- The BC SPCA Provincial Call Centre at 1-855-522-7722 (1-855-6-BC-SPCA) or the Abbotsford Police Department at 604-859-5225 can be contacted to report animals in distress and requiring assistance.
Mice and rats have coexisted with humans for much of history. If you suspect that mice or rats are living on your property, it is important to take action quickly as their numbers can multiply rapidly.
Four key words to guide management efforts are: Clean, Seal, Identify, Trap.
- Clean: remove all food sources such as pet food, grass seed, bulbs, unharvested fruit, vegetables or nuts, bird and wildlife feeders.
- Seal: Carefully look for all access points to buildings – seal any that are larger than 0.5cm.
- Identify: Take the time to try and identify the species you’re dealing with. This knowledge will make control efforts far more effective. Numerous online resources exist.
- Trap: A variety of trap types are available. Poison bait traps are not recommended due to a likelihood of poisoning non-target species or of animals dying, undetected, within buildings. Ensure people and pets will not come into accidental contact with traps. Always use gloves when handling traps.
Fraser Health has local Environmental Health Officers available to provide assistance and information regarding infestation, identification and control of common household pests, such as insects and rodents. In Abbotsford, call the Health Protection Office 604-870-7900.
Abbotsford Health Protection Office # 207 - 2776 Bourquin Crescent West Abbotsford, B.C. V2S 6A4 Phone: 604-870-7900 Hours of operation Mon - Fri, 8:30 am - 4:30 pm
Rodent Resources