waterdamagequotesFlood maps · Fraser Valley and Lower Mainland
BC flood maps: who made them, where to find one, and Abbotsford and the Fraser Valley after 2021
In November 2021 atmospheric rivers flooded the Sumas Prairie in Abbotsford. Flood water breached the Sumas River dike, and the pump station that keeps the prairie dry was nearly overwhelmed. Searches for an Abbotsford flood map have not stopped since.
This page sets out how flood maps work in British Columbia — who made them, to what standard, and why many are out of date — what is being built on the Sumas Prairie, how to read a map for the Fraser Valley and the rest of the Lower Mainland, and what insurance and BC’s disaster assistance do. The general guide is on the flood maps page.
The short version
- BC mapped 70 communities between 1974 and the early 2000s; responsibility for flood mapping moved to local governments in 2004.
- New provincial floodplain maps, released in June 2026, cover 58 communities on five waterways, including the Fraser from Yale to Mission.
- The design flood is the 200-year flood for most communities, and the 1894 flood of record on the lower Fraser.
- The Barrowtown Pump Station was nearly overwhelmed in November 2021; the Province committed $76.6 million to upgrade it.
- BC’s disaster assistance pays 80% of eligible damage less $1,000, to $400,000 — but not for what was insurable.
Who made BC’s flood maps, and when
Fraser Basin Council, FloodWise — About Flood Maps in BC · 2025
Under the 1987 Canada/British Columbia floodplain mapping agreement, the Province kept producing maps until the early 2000s, by which time 70 BC communities were mapped. The Fraser Basin Council says those provincial maps are now dated and do not cover all flood hazard areas, though in many cases they may still be the most useful information available at a community level. Page dated January 30, 2025.
Fraser Basin Council, FloodWise — About Flood Maps in BC · 2025
In 2015 the federal National Disaster Mitigation Program, a five-year $200-million cost-shared programme, funded local governments to modernize flood maps, so some community maps have been updated.
The history explains what you find when you go looking. Provincial maps from the 1980s and 1990s exist for many communities and, the Fraser Basin Council says, may still be the most detailed information available locally — but they are dated and do not cover every hazard area. Since 2004 it has been up to each municipality and regional district to map and regulate, so newer maps exist where a local government has paid for them, often with federal money, and not elsewhere. For a Fraser Valley address the first place to look is the city or regional district; the Fraser Basin Council’s FloodWise site links the Lower Mainland strategy maps for regional planning.
Where to find a flood map anywhere in BC
Province of British Columbia, Floodplain mapping · 2026
The Province's routes to a map: CivicInfo BC, to reach the First Nation or local government with jurisdiction for the most up-to-date maps; the iMap BC floodplain layer, including historical mapping projects; and the ClimateReadyBC Flood Study Explorer, which holds the maps from the 1974–2003 Floodplain Development Control Program and the 1987–1998 Canada–B.C. Floodplain Mapping Agreement. Page last updated June 9, 2026.
For an address outside the Fraser Valley the order is the same: the local government or First Nation first, because since 2004 they hold the current maps, then the Province’s two viewers. iMap BC shows the provincial floodplain layer and the old mapping projects; the ClimateReadyBC Flood Study Explorer holds the 1974–2003 and 1987–1998 provincial maps and the newest ones. Where no map exists, the Province is plain that this does not mean no flood risk.
Phase 1, on five waterways: the Coquihalla and Fraser rivers from Yale to Mission; the Fraser and Nechako around Prince George and Vanderhoof; the Bulkley and Skeena from Houston to downstream of Terrace; Shuswap Lake and the rivers draining into it; and the Upper Columbia and Kicking Horse near Golden and Invermere. The Province says it invested more than $13 million and the federal government more than $12 million, that Phase 2 is underway, and that the maps are in the Flood Study Explorer.
The new maps, released in June 2026, cover 58 communities on five waterways, including the Fraser from Yale to Mission, and Prince George, the Skeena, the Shuswap and the Upper Columbia. A second phase is underway. For those 58 communities, a map made before 2004 is no longer the most recent one.
Province of British Columbia, River Forecast Centre · 2026
What the River Forecast Centre does. During high flood risk it points to its Flood Warnings and Advisories page; its 7-Day Streamflow Hazard Outlook is issued on Mondays and Thursdays and does not replace official forecasts or advisories. Page last updated June 18, 2026.
A floodplain map is not a flood warning. For a flood that is coming, the Province’s River Forecast Centre issues the warnings and advisories, and its twice-weekly streamflow outlook is a summary, not a forecast.
The design flood
Fraser Basin Council, FloodWise — About Flood Maps in BC · 2025
The Council notes the 1894 flood is currently close to a 0.2% (“500-year”) event, and that Fraser River and coastal floods are expected to become more frequent and severe, so dike design standards need re-evaluating.
So a flood map in most of BC shows a bigger flood than Alberta’s 1:100 standard: a 200-year event. On the lower Fraser it shows the 1894 flood of record, which the Council now puts close to a 500-year event. The same page warns that Fraser and coastal floods are expected to get more frequent and severe, and that the standards dikes are built to need re-evaluating.
Province of British Columbia, Floodplain mapping · 2026
The Province's correction of a common misunderstanding about return periods. Its table: 5% AEP is a 20-year event, 1% a 100-year event, 0.5% a 200-year event and 0.2% a 500-year event. It adds that floods can occur at any time, may exceed the estimated level, and that some areas may flood more often than the mapped scenario shows.
A 200-year flood is a 0.5 per cent chance in any year, not a flood that comes once every two centuries. The Province’s own example: a 20-year flood that happened last year is still a 5 per cent chance this year.
How to read a Lower Mainland flood map
Fraser Basin Council, FloodWise — About Flood Maps in BC · 2025
The Council's advice when reading any flood map: find out the purpose it was made for; it likely shows a single flood scenario. It distinguishes hazard, intensity, exposure, risk and emergency maps.
| Map type | What it shows | Useful for |
|---|---|---|
| Flood hazard | Area a given flood would cover; sometimes elevations and construction levels | Planning, building rules |
| Flood intensity | Depth and speed in a flood scenario | Understanding severity |
| Flood exposure | Which buildings and assets would be flooded | Planning |
| Flood risk | Likely consequences, often in dollars | Prioritizing mitigation |
| Emergency | Dikes, routes, evacuation zones, shelters | During a flood |
The Council’s advice is to find out what a map was made for before drawing conclusions from it. A regional strategy map is not a property-level answer. Where a local map shows a flood construction level, that is the height habitable floors must be built above — useful when buying, and something to ask the municipality about directly.
The Sumas Prairie after 2021
About the Barrowtown Pump Station, opened in 1983 to pump water off the Sumas Prairie into the Fraser River. The Province committed $76.6 million to upgrades — a six-metre flood wall, new debris screens and pump motors — bringing its support for Abbotsford's recovery to nearly $180 million.
The Sumas Prairie is low-lying land kept dry by dikes and by the Barrowtown Pump Station lifting water into the Fraser via the Sumas Canal. In November 2021 the water arrived faster than the system could remove it. The Premier’s words in the Province’s release were that the floods could have been much worse had the pump station failed.
Government of British Columbia, Sumas River Watershed Flood Mitigation Planning Initiative · 2026
The partners named on the page include the Semá:th and Leq'á:mel First Nations, the cities of Abbotsford and Chilliwack, and the Province; in February 2026 the Government of Canada committed to the Sumas Prairie Watershed Table. Last updated June 17, 2026.
What is being built
City of Abbotsford, Council supports Sumas Prairie long-term flood mitigation · 2026
The phase also improves resilience at Barrowtown and replaces temporary works along the Sumas Dyke with permanent ones. The City says the new station addresses what happens when it cannot open the flood boxes — what occurred in November 2021 and also occurs during the spring freshet. Undated news release.
The City’s preferred option is a hybrid aimed at protecting the existing system while keeping farmland and limiting the number of affected properties. Its first phase is a new Sumas River Pump Station, work at Barrowtown, and permanent works on the Sumas Dyke. The reason for the new station is specific: when the flood boxes cannot be opened — as in November 2021 and during the spring freshet — water has nowhere to go. The plan also commits the City to keep working with other jurisdictions on the remaining pieces; the Province lists a separate transboundary initiative for the Nooksack and Sumas watersheds.
Insurance and disaster assistance
Province of British Columbia, Financial assistance in a disaster · 2026
For each accepted claim; the regulation says the same. Applications are due within 90 days of the disaster being declared eligible, and the property must have been your principal residence at the time; seasonal or recreational properties are not eligible. Insurance deductibles are not eligible costs.
Province of British Columbia, Financial assistance in a disaster · 2026
Last updated April 14, 2026. The Province lists what it counts as insurable: wildfires, earthquakes, snow load, wind storms, sewer or sump pit back-up, and water entry from above ground. The regulation (B.C. Reg. 124/95) excludes costs for which insurance was reasonably and readily available, and damage from inadequate drainage or internal sewer or storm backup where insurance was reasonably and readily available. Overland flooding is not on BC's insurable list.
BC’s Disaster Financial Assistance is for losses that could not be insured. The Province lists sewer or sump back-up and water entry from above ground as insurable, so a homeowner who could have bought those endorsements and did not should not expect DFA to cover them. River flooding is the case DFA is designed for where overland insurance was not available. Full rules: western disaster assistance and overland water coverage.
General Insurance OmbudService (GIO), Water Damage & Insurance: What will my insurance cover? · 2026
GIO's definition of overland water coverage — also optional, and also only available from some insurers. The phrase “at or above ground level” is the whole difference from ground water, which comes up through the foundation, wall or floor. It is also the closest any neutral source comes to defining “above ground water”.
The same release: this type of insurance is usually not included in standard home policies, new floodplain maps may make it easier for some people to get coverage, and homeowners should ask their insurer what overland options are available in their area.
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Questions people actually ask
Where can I find a flood map for Abbotsford?
Since 2004, flood mapping in BC has been the responsibility of local governments, so the City of Abbotsford and the regional district are the first places to look. The Fraser Basin Council's FloodWise site links Lower Mainland flood strategy maps for regional planning, and older provincial maps exist for 70 communities.
Where can I find a flood map for my address in BC?
Start with the local government or First Nation, which have held flood mapping since 2004; CivicInfo BC lists who to contact. The Province's iMap BC shows its floodplain layer, and the ClimateReadyBC Flood Study Explorer holds older provincial maps and the new maps for 58 communities released in June 2026.
What flood does a BC flood map show?
The design flood: the estimated 200-year flood for most communities, and the estimated 1894 flood of record for the lower Fraser River, according to the Fraser Basin Council.
Can a flood map tell me if my house will flood?
Often not. The Fraser Basin Council says many flood maps are high level and not intended to be relied on to determine whether an individual property will flood.
What happened in Sumas Prairie in 2021?
During the November 2021 atmospheric rivers, flood waters breached the Sumas River dike and the Barrowtown Pump Station was nearly overwhelmed, according to the Province, which later committed $76.6 million to upgrade the station.
What is being done to protect Sumas Prairie?
The City of Abbotsford's preferred option starts with a new Sumas River Pump Station, improvements at Barrowtown and permanent works on the Sumas Dyke, within a 2023 collaborative framework with First Nations, Chilliwack and the Province.
Does BC disaster assistance cover flooding?
BC's Disaster Financial Assistance pays 80% of eligible damage less $1,000, to $400,000, but not for damage that was insurable, which the Province says includes sewer or sump back-up and water entry from above ground.
Where to read next
- How to read any flood map
- Western DFA
- BC strata water damage
- Overland water coverage
- Ottawa flood maps
Sources cited on this page
- Fraser Basin Council, FloodWise — About Flood Maps in BC
- Government of British Columbia, Improvements to Abbotsford pump station build resilience (February 14, 2024)
- Government of British Columbia, Sumas River Watershed Flood Mitigation Planning Initiative
- City of Abbotsford, Council supports Sumas Prairie long-term flood mitigation
- Province of British Columbia, Financial assistance in a disaster
- General Insurance OmbudService (GIO), Water Damage & Insurance: What will my insurance cover?
- Province of British Columbia, Floodplain mapping
- Province of British Columbia, New floodplain maps support flood preparedness (news release, June 17, 2026)
- Province of British Columbia, River Forecast Centre
Every figure above was read from the source it is attributed to on September 20, 2026. How we check this.
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