Warnings of heavy rain, potential flooding for southeastern B.C.

Parts of British Columbia's Kootenays region could see heavy rain on Wednesday, raising warnings of flooding.

Environment Canada says cities including Kimberley, Creston and Cranbrook could see up to 50 millimetres of rain in a stark turn of events for the area, where dozens of fires have been burning, threatening communities and creating smoky conditions.

In a special weather statement for the West and East Kootenay, Kootenay Lake and sections of the Elk Valley, the agency said an expected 30-50 millimetres of rainfall could cause flooding and low visibility on roads.

"An upper low will cross the Idaho panhandle early this morning and then move into northwestern Montana, bringing periods of heavy rain and embedded thunderstorms to parts of the Kootenays," said the statement.

Heavy rain is expected to ease to a few showers Wednesday afternoon as the low moves into eastern Montana, said Environment Canada.

Lisa Erven, a meteorologist with Environment Canada, said Wednesday's rainfall in the Kootenays will be intense at times and could amount to new daily rainfall records by the end of the day.

"We could see rainfall rates of five to 10 millimetres of rain per hour or even higher rates if there's some embedded thunderstorms," she said. "So, it's that combination of volume and rate."

With files from Yasmine Ghania