Flood warnings issued for Kitchener, Grand Valley, West Montrose and St. Jacobs

A series of thunderstorm rolled through Waterloo Region and set off flood warnings across the Grand River watershed. CTV's Tony Grace has more.

Concerns about flooding are rising as the Grand River Conservation Authority continues to keep a close eye on the Grand River watershed.

On Tuesday, Flood Watches for the communities of Kitchener, Grand Valley, West Montrose and St. Jacobs were updated into Flood Warnings. The rest of the watershed remains under a Flood Watch.

“Recent warm temperatures, beginning on Monday, March 30, along with thunderstorms and heavy rain have resulted in up to 30 mm of rainfall across the Grand River watershed over the past 24 hours,” the conservation authority said in a news release. “Current forecasts indicate moderate to heavy precipitation throughout the week, with more rain expected on Tuesday afternoon, including the ongoing risk of thunderstorms. While projected totals vary, most forecasts call for 40 to 50 mm of rain over the next few days.”

The conservation authority also said river flows had already exceeded flooding thresholds in Grand Valley and flooding had been reporting in some of the low-lying areas in and around St. Jacobs.

In Kitchener, river flows were expected to burst their banks Tuesday evening, impacting low lying areas.

In West Montrose, river flows were expected to reach Flood Warning Zone 1 by Tuesday afternoon.