A community in B.C.’s Cariboo district remains under a local state of emergency after a small landslide west of Quesnel blocked part of the creek that runs through the city.
Specialists from Emergency Management BC say the slide near Baker Creek may have happened as early as June 28, which created a blockage that backed up water at a depth of three to 3.6 metres.
If the obstruction gave way, 30 cubic metres of water would be released every second, nearing the average flow rate during flood season.
“It would overtake the bank of the creek and basically put the residents… at risk,” Fire chief Sylvain Gauthier said.
People are being warned to stay away from Baker Creek, which is a popular swimming and tubing spot near Pinnacles Provincial Park.
Longtime resident David Haley lives about 100 metres away from the creek. He says that although it’s a good sign water is still flowing through it, a blockage could create problems.
“There certainly could be a large dam of water, and if it let go at once we're not that far away,” he said.
Last month, flash floods tore through Sicamous in the Shuswap region, damaging homes and ripping up roads.
While the risk of a flash flood in Quesnel is still in effect, geotechnical experts have told the city they do not believe the blockage in Baker Creek will collapse.
“The creek is making its way around the blockage and the water coming in right now is the same amount that is leaving the blockage. So it’s moving and it’s not accumulating any more water behind the blockage, so they're fairly confident nothing is going to happen,” Gauthier said.
The state of emergency is expected to be lifted Monday.
With a report from CTV British Columbia’s Maria Weisgarber
