HISTORICAL NEWS SEARCH - Government of British Columbia

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Spring runoff caused the Fraser River at Prince George to rise to a record level of 25 ft. causing the city to flood. According to water level taken by J. Simonson, in 1911 the gauge at South Fort George reached a high mark of 18 ft. (Prince George Citizen, May 31, 1928). June 11, 1913 Event type: Spring runoff flooding. Precipitation: Not applicable. Source: The Vancouver World, July 16, 1911. On June 11, Tète Jaune flooded due to the sudden rise of the Fraser River. Heavy rains during the previous few days caused a sharp rise in the water levels. In Main Street, the water was 6 ft. (1.8 m) deep and still rising. (The Vancouver World). March 31-April 2, 1912 Event type: Severe storm. Precipitation: Ikeda Bay (68.6 mm/2 days), March 31-April 1, 1912; Swanson Bay (189.3 mm/2 days), March 31-April 2, 1912; Prince Rupert (117.1 mm/2 days), April 1-2, 1912. Source: The Daily News, April 2, 3, and 4, 1912; The Evening Empire, April 1, 2, and 3, 1912. On April 1, Prince Rupert recorded 2.04 in. (51.8 mm) of rain and 3.18 in. (80.8 mm). On April 4, a “blizzard” dumped 7.5 in. (19.1 cm) of snow on Prince Rupert. The Vancouver-bound S.S. Chelohsin was badly damaged during the heavy gale. The ship was driven on the rocks in the Skeena Slough south of Prince Rupert. October 1-2, 10-11, 1913 Event type: Landslide. Precipitation: Bella Coola (55.4 mm/2 days), October 1-2, 1913; Bella Coola (66.0 mm/2 days), October 10-11, 1913. Source: Bella Coola Courier, October 4 and 18, 1913. Bella Coola recorded a total rainfall of 8.11 in. (206.0 mm) for September. A landslide occurred 35 mi. (56 km) up the valley above the Gibson Ranch during the first half of October. It damaged a portion of the wagon road, cutting off the upper valley. October 29-November 3, 1913 Event type: Rain-on-snow flooding. Precipitation: Bella Coola (58.7 mm/1 day), October 22, 1913; Masset (47.0 mm/1 day), November 3, 1913. Source: The Daily News, November 3, 1913; The Omineca Herald, November 7, 1913; The Morning Sun, November 3, 1913. Three days of rain caused several large snowslides on Rocher de Boule near New Hazelton. In the Bella Coola area, incessant rains on snow caused the “most serious flood that the oldest settlers have ever known.” On October 29, the Neeleetsconnoy River and other streams started rising rapidly. By 3 p.m., large streams of water were running down the main streets. The river, which peaked at 6 p.m., seemed to have changed its course running through town at a depth of over 2 ft. (60 cm). The stream carried a horse and wagon engaged in rescue operations for 40 yd. (36 m) before becoming jammed in a pile of logs. Only with great difficulty the men and horse were extricated (Bella Coola Courier In: The Daily News). November 30-December 3, 1913 Event type: Rain-on-snow flooding. Precipitation: Ikeda Bay (282.4 mm/4 days), November 30-December 3, 1913; Terrace (157.0 mm/3 days), December 1-3, 1913. Source: The Omineca Herald, December 5, 1913; Varley 1981 (pp. 132-133). Debris slides and washouts interrupted the rail traffic between Terrace-Smithers. The train passengers were transferred to a special train. Foley, Welch & Stewart’s derrick and crew cleared a big landslide at Mile 125, 5 mi. (8 km) east of Pacific. The slide was several feet high. Other damage consisted of a washout at Woodcock, a big slide just west of Sealy, and six small slides west and a big slide just east of the big tunnel between New Hazelton-Bulkley Canyon. Heavy rains caused the Kitimat River to flood roads near Kitamaat Village. The Anderson’s ranch along the west side of Kouwthpega (Anderson’s) Creek had its landing and boathouse carried downstream. (Varley 1981). December 8-9, 1913 Event type: Debris flows. Precipitation: Ikeda Bay (247.0 mm/4 days), December 6-9, 1913; Prince Rupert (112.3 mm/1 day), December 8, 1913; Terrace (38.1 mm/1 day), December 8, 1913. Source: The Daily News, December 8 and 9, 1913; The Omineca Herald, December 5, 12 and 19, 1913; Queen Charlotte Islander, December 10 and 17, 1913; The Interior News, December 13 and 20, 1913. 10
On December 9, Prince Rupert reported 3.86 in. (98.0 mm) of rain and 1.35 in. (34.3 mm) on December 10. The rail line sustained heavy damage, interrupting the rail traffic for over two weeks. The train passengers were held up for a week and some interior points were running short on food supplies. Many mudslides occurred along the railroad as far east as Moricetown. *1) The big slide at the hill cut at Mud Creek required pile driving over the full distance. On the east side, 300 ft. (100 m) of the hill went out. A pile bridge was erected and two steam shovels had to be brought in to widen the cuts several hundred feet. At the big cut at Duncanon, a few miles east of Hazelton, mudslides and several small slides occurred at the lower part of the railroad. On the Queen Charlotte Islands a slide blocked the Nadu road. It was cleared by the provincial government. The storm on the night of December 8 caused some damage. The gasoline launch Johnnie, belonging to the Tingley Bros., broke from its mooring. It sustained considerable damage after being blown across the lake to Ship Island. ----------------------- *1) To avoid the “gumbo” slides, the railway company considered abandoning the present grade in favour of the surveyed Old Copper River route (The Daily News, December 8, 1913). February 24-28, 1914 Event type: Flooding. Precipitation: Ikeda Bay (273.2 mm/5 days), February 24-28, 1914; Prince Rupert (133.0 mm/3 days), February 25-27, 1914; Prince Rupert (65.0 mm/1 day), February 26, 1914. Source: The Daily News, February 26, 1914; The Evening Empire, February 25, 26, and 27, 1914. Prince Rupert reported 1.81 in. (46.0 mm) of rain on February 25, 1.57 in. (39.9 mm) on February 26, and 1.38 in. (35.1 mm) on February 27. The excavation job on the new Post Office site was flooded out. November 20-25, 1914 Event type: Rain-on-snow flooding and landslides. Precipitation: Ikeda Bay (237.3 mm/5 days), November 20-24, 1914; Prince Rupert (116.8 mm/4 days), November 21- 24, 1914; Terrace (147.0 mm/4 days), November 22-25, 1914. Source: The Omineca Herald, November 27, 1914; The Interior News, November 28, 1914; Varley 1981 (pp. 134-136 and 223). As a result of incessant rains on November 22 and 23, trains were blocked by slides east and west of Smithers. The Bulkley River rose significantly, carrying large quantities of trees and driftwood. Old-timers claimed this “the biggest rain on record here at this season.” For the week ending November 25, Hazelton reported 2.55 in. (64.8 mm) of rain. The heavy snowfall turned into rain, causing slides a few miles east of New Hazelton. The train traffic was interrupted, delaying the westbound train for 36 hours. Very warm weather, combined with two days of heavy rain, a 25 ft.-(7.5 m) tide, and a full moon, caused heavy flood damage near Kitamaat Village. Roads and the Anderson ranch were flooded. *1) The water came so high that it flooded the valley for miles around. The Kitimat River cut a whole swath of timber from the Hallet and Mitchell logging operation, 2 mi. (3.2 km) upstream from the Anderson ranch. A big logjam formed at the head of Kouwthpega (Anderson’s) Creek. The water was running wild down the low land just upstream. The backed-up river directed its flow westward through Little Klupa Creek (Varley 1981). ----------------------- *1) The southwestern corner of the Anderson ranch has changed drastically since. By 1952, Kouwthpega Creek cut west as far as the corner of the front lawn and had taken the cabin, the barn, and the entire barnyard (Varley 1981). March 16-19, 1915 Event type: Mudslide. Precipitation: Prince Rupert (92.8 mm/4 days), March 16-19, 1915; Terrace (28.2 mm/1 day), March 17, 1915; Ikeda Bay (92.2 mm/2 days), March 17-18, 1915. Source: The Omineca Herald, March 19, 1915. On March 17, just east of New Hazelton, the spring’s first major mudslide occurred. The passenger train was held up for 24 hours. Two ditchers were involved in clearing the slide. Winter 1915-1916 Event type: Fatal snow avalanche. Precipitation: Not applicable. Source: Anthony L’Orsa, pers. comm. June 12, 1995. During the winter 1915-16, a snow avalanche on the southeastern shoulder of Mount Cronin killed a man carrying mail for the Cronin mine. *1) --------------------------- *1) Old-timers named the avalanche track “Dead Man’s Gulch”. March 6-10, 1916 11
Page 1 and 2: Flooding and Landslide Events North
Page 3 and 4: 1 Introduction Weather is one of th
Page 5 and 6: Precipitation: Port Simpson (198.4
Page 7 and 8: In interviews conducted in 1985, Mo
Page 9: 1989), which is about one third of
Page 13 and 14: The flood indirectly damaged the Un
Page 15 and 16: channel. This it obtains across the
Page 17 and 18: Due to the heavy snowstorm in Stewa
Page 19 and 20: oom on the top floor of the residen
Page 21 and 22: *1) The highest mark recorded durin
Page 23 and 24: the Royal Fish Co., moored at the d
Page 25 and 26: Source: The Daily News, November 13
Page 27 and 28: River after floodwaters completely
Page 29 and 30: Around Smithers, several days of mi
Page 31 and 32: Exceptionally heavy rains and wind
Page 33 and 34: saved were the canned goods. Some f
Page 35 and 36: Flood damage also occurred in the B
Page 37 and 38: Muddy Gulch and the terminal, the B
Page 39 and 40: ewildered with the speed with which
Page 41 and 42: second pier and the span on the Haz
Page 43 and 44: Source: The Interior News, March 8,
Page 45 and 46: Ministry of Transportation and High
Page 47 and 48: January 15-19, 1947 Event type: Sno
Page 49 and 50: Precipitation: Not applicable. Sour
Page 51 and 52: ft. (0.6-1.2 m). At Mile 62.5, wash
Page 53 and 54: Precipitation: Not applicable. Sour
Page 55 and 56: force. The storm with winds of 50-6
Page 57 and 58: Source: The Interior News, December
Page 59 and 60: December 8-10, 1951 Event type: Rai
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Source: The Omineca Herald, August
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October 11-16, 1954 Event type: Deb
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October 5-14, 1955 Event type: Rock
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Around 5 p.m. on October 14, a rock
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CNR reported rock and snowslides at
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was a contorted track over which a
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The avalanche, which came down 500
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levels. Forty feet (12 m) of riverb
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Precipitation: Falls River (131.8 m
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concentrated on the Bear River Pass
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On February 5, three men narrowly e
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October 15-17, 1962 Event type: Flo
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Precipitation: Not applicable. Sour
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Trailer Court were endangered. On J
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Sweetin River crosses the forestry
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During the spring, high water cause
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Kitimat reported 10.7 in. (271.8 mm
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On January 23, the Bella Coola Rive
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(143.0 mm/2 days), October 22-23, 1
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This third recorded jökulhlaup eve
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eported snowslides at Mile 14.3, 22
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Smithers Landing Road to Babine Lak
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The slide took place in a small bay
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Source: Gilbert 1972. On August 1,
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long, which occurred 44 mi. (70.4 k
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the slide area. Both drivers walked
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September 14-15, 1972 Event type: D
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Power outages occurred in Prince Ru
Page 117 and 118:
The coroner’s inquiry found that
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Construction of a new tramline and
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idge construction project near Terr
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*2) Addendum 1 of TFL #1 provided f
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federal tidal surveyor Bob Brown, h
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hat as a scoop, he managed to reach
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According to the report, it is prob
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(Environment Canada 1991). It rose
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Highway 37 between Kitwanga-Cranber
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A special camp was rented, fitted,
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maximum discharge rate of 1,200 m 3
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Precipitation: Nass Camp (38.6 mm/1
Page 141 and 142:
Prince Rupert was without power for
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Between July 31-August 2, Dawson Cr
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1984; Kemano (98.0 mm/2 days), Nove
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Precipitation: Sewell Inlet (121.0
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speculation and evidence to suggest
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log home, which was undamaged but t
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At Commotion Creek, significant dam
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In July, heavy rainfall caused wide
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side of the Bulkley River. Near Tel
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efore impacting the embankment. It
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The heavy rains caused two slides o
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The cost for bank protection of Sto
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1991). According to John Newhouse,
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On October 15, the Kispiox River ne
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1992 Event type: Slope failure. Pre
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For a time, the highway between Ter
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Early June 1993 Event type: Spring
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Source: Northern Sentinel, May 25,
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May 14, 1995 Event type: Spring run
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During mid-February, heavy rains on
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powerlines and causing cancelled ai
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Early March, a logjam and a series
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On May 18, the Fraser River caused
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Source: Schwab 1999. On the morning
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*2) Slope gradient and distance est
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million m 3 . About 30% of the tota
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ased RCMP helicopter was standing b
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----------------------- *1) Dating
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Precipitation: Not applicable. Sour
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Chimdemash Creek: October 29-Novemb
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Kingcome River: October 16-21, 1965
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Salmon Creek: November 26-December
Page 205 and 206:
October 16-20, 1964; October 21-24,
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21, 1952; October 25-27, 1953; May
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March 25, 1989 A piece of falling i
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Clague, J.J. and W.H. Mathews. 1992
Page 213 and 214:
Lebuis, J..J., Robert, M. and P. Ri
Page 215 and 216:
Tempest, W. 1974. Bella Coola River
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HISTORICAL NEWS SEARCH - Government of British Columbia

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