The first evacuations have been ordered on B.C.'s South Coast because of the threat of flooding, as river levels continue to rise across the province.

Rising water cut off access to parts of the Mount Currie Reserve.
(CBC)

Five homes were evacuated on the Mount Currie Reserve north of Whistler overnight, as the rising water of the Birkenhead River began cutting off road access to parts of the community.

The band's senior administrator, Daniel Sailland, said everyone pulled together sandbagging Wednesday to keep the rising waters out.

"There has been an incredibe turnout. We've had people running with their pickup trucks, we've had people coming out of their homes, people getting rides on the city bus to come through the water on Lillooet Lake so they can help sandbag down below."

Meanwhile, more than 1,000 people along the Fraser River remain on evacuation alert.

Residents of low-lying areas of Langley, Fort Langley, Maple Ridge, Chilliwack and Abbotsford have been warned they may have to flee their homes on short notice.

The Albion ferry, which links Maple Ridge and Fort Langley, has imposed load restrictions because of the high water

The federal Corrections Service is making plans to evacuate hundreds of inmates at prisons in the  Fraser Valley if flooding does happen.
 
As of Wednesday morning, the water level at the Mission river gauge was at 5.6 metres. Forecasters say that could rise to 7.5 metres by Friday, the highest level since 1972.  But officials say they don't expect that will be high enough to spill over the dikes.

The Bulkley River has flooded low-lying roads in Smithers in northwestern B.C.
(CBC)

Meanwhile, in northern B.C., the City of Terrace has declared a state of emergency after losing its road links east and west because of flooding.

Homes have been evacuated in low-lying areas of Smithers and Prince George, with hundreds more on evacuation alert.

The Telegraph Creek Road has also been washed out, cutting off 300 residents in that community.