Vancouver wants your photos of the king tides to predict the city's shoreline

Sandbagging in the Jericho and Locarno beach areas in preparation for King Tide flooding in Vancouver. (Kenneth Chan / Daily Hive)

Extremely high tides will be hitting Vancouver until the end of November, part of the natural phenomenon called the king tides.

The event happens twice a year due to the sun and moon’s gravitational forces reinforcing one another. During each occurrence, one can see the tides reach as high as five meters in elevation — a meter higher than a normal high tide.

King Tide flooding Vancouver Jericho Beach Locarno Beach

Sandbagging in the Jericho and Locarno beach areas in preparation for king tide flooding in Vancouver. (Kenneth Chan / Daily Hive)

While the City of Vancouver has already sandbagged several areas around Jericho and Locarno beach, they’re reaching out to citizens to snap pictures of the shoreline during the king tide season.

The photos allow experts to compare the tide to coastal flood maps so that the city can identify vulnerable areas and prepare for them accordingly.

Sandbagging in the Jericho and Locarno beach areas in preparation for king tide flooding in Vancouver. (Kenneth Chan / Daily Hive)

Researchers will also have the ability to visualize what sea levels will look like as they’re affected by climate change.

By 2050, a high tide on a winter’s day will reach the same height as the annual king tide of today, meaning the potential for more floods and storms in the not-so-far future.

The king tides will take place until Friday, November 30 and are expected around the following times:

Tuesday, November 27 at 9:26 am
Wednesday, November 28 at 10:18 am
Thursday, November 29 at 11:10 am
Friday, November 30 at 11:59 am

Photos can be shared through the city’s Sea Level Rise Story Map and can be uploaded online. All that’s needed is a photo along with the date, time, and location.

During the last king tides, which took place in January of 2018, nearly 400 photos were collected. Additional images will only help further protect the city’s coastline.

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