West Coast residents are used to wet weather, but few living in Vancouver's Lower Mainland have seen anything like the record-breaking rains that fell this week.

Meteorologists are calling it a 100-year storm and they say it's happening because rain is moving north from the tropics. They just can't believe how much there is.

The deluge has quickly changed a dry summer into a soaking autumn. As much as 200 millimetres have fallen on some communities and has forced some people from their homes.

Many roads are flooded and an 83-year-old woman died in hospital after a car crash in the Vancouver suburb of South Surrey.

"In the past 24 hours we've had 35 collisions in the city of Surrey, that's more than double what it normally would be," one police officer said.

The record-breaking downpour fell on Vancouver and its surrounding areas overnight Thursday. More rain fell in a 24-hour period than in the first two weeks of this month.

In just a few hours there was as much as 75 millimetres on the ground. The torrential rains flooded roads and basements in Vancouver and surrounding areas.

Records were broken in Vancouver, Abbotsford, and Victoria which triggered a run on umbrellas and pumps. Forecasters predict the wet weather will continue in B.C. for several days.

The Vancouver International Airport recorded a same-day record of 62 millimetres, surpassing the 1975 mark of 51 millimetres.

But, Coquitlam was the wettest spot, with 115 millimetres of rain by 5 p.m. (PT) Thursday.

The rainy weather didn't spare Vancouver Island. Tofino had 71 millimetres while Victoria received 91 millimetres, breaking a 1975 record of 37 millimetres.

Police warned motorists to take care their vehicles didn't hydroplane out of control on streets flooded with water due to backed up sewers.

With reports from CTV's Todd Battis and The Canadian Press