A River in the Sky

When the storm of the century hits the west coast, smashing rainfall records, no one is fully prepared. As the storm takes hold, landslides batter highways, trapping hundreds of drivers. Chelsey Hughes is heading home from a weekend getaway when a wall of debris slams into her car, throwing her into a river of mud and into a fight for survival. In the nearby Sumas region, community heroes like Gary Baars jump into action when rising water overwhelms the system of dikes and pumps that protects their land. Local farmers mount daring rescues of stranded workers and drowning livestock. As defenses collapse, one group of locals works through the night to save the pump station – their community's last safeguard. In the storm's aftermath workers race to rebuild dikes and reconnect important roads. Beyond the rush to fix what's broken, experts explore new ways to manage life in vulnerable flood plains and adapt to the intensifying forces of nature.