HISTORICAL NEWS SEARCH - Government of British Columbia

log home, which was undamaged but the yard and garden suffered severely. Downstream from Lister’s, damage to the
Fred Coles property was limited to fencing and loss of land.
A considerable quantity of wood debris blocked the Canyon Creek channel immediately upstream of the
Babine Lake Road crossing. It resulted in gravel deposition, lateral relocation of the channel towards the left bank
(Schwegler property) farm buildings and overbank flow, which threatened the farmhouse and downstream hayfield. Of
major concern to the owner was the loss of burial of his industrial-domestic water intake-pump system adjacent to the
farmyard.
Downstream from the highway crossing of Canyon Creek a cut-off channel developed, which resulted the
isolation or destruction of at least eight domestic water intake-pump systems. A further four or more might suffer water
quality problems as the water table drops and groundwater being of poor quality in this area.
Unusually severe localised damage, mostly to water supply intakes, left a number of properties and one dairy
farm without proper water supplies. Based on a very cursory assessment, the estimated repair costs were: water supply
system: $28,000; channel restoration: $1,000; riprap/erosion control: $17,000 and property cleanup $1,000 for a total
of $47,500. (Nesbitt-Porter).
Several bridge approaches on Forest Service roads (FSR) were washed out, causing at least $24,000 damage.
On the Telkwa FSR, the Cumming and Jonas bridges sustained $1,500 damage each. On the Houston-Walcott FSR
total damage to the Dockerill and Emerson bridges totaled $5,000. On the Blunt Creek FSR, damage to the Blunt
Creek bridge was about $11,000. Two or three bridges on the McDonell FSR, were damaged for a total of $5,000 (S.
Tehara, pers. comm.). At 19 km on the Morice River FSR, a large section of road collapsed, closing the road for
several days. The “massive” slide was still active on June 25. According to B.C. Forest Service Morice District
Manager Arnold Amonson, the whole hillside was moving. Crews were working to drain the hill of water and to
rebuild the slumped road.
---------------------------
*1) A record 55 mm of rain in 24 hours broke the June 24-hour record of 29 mm. This intensity, even without
snowmelt, will produce fall-winter period floods. (Ministry of Environment).
October 1-5, 1986
Event type: Debris slide.
Precipitation: Prince Rupert M. Circ (182.8 mm/5 days), October 1-5, 1986; Kildala (32.6 mm/1 day), October 2, 1986;
Prince Rupert (257.1 mm/4 days), October 2-5, 1986; Hartley Bay (172.8 mm/3 days), October 3-5, 1986; Falls River
(63.4 mm/1 day), October 4, 1986; Nass Camp (69.6 mm/2 days), October 4-5, 1986; Stewart A (96.2 mm/2 days),
October 4-5, 1986.
Source: File M51-651-705180, Debris Flow Hwy. 37A (Airphoto BC 5425 No. 018). B.C. Ministry of Transportation
and Highways, Terrace
On October 5, a debris slide came down on Highway 37A between Meziadin-Stewart. The debris flow,
consisting of cobbles, boulders, and saturated tills, was about 100 m wide. It started running in the evening and at
11:30 p.m. the road was officially closed. In the 24-36 hours before the slide, Stewart recorded approximately 125 mm
of rain.
October 26-28, 1986
Event type: Flooding.
Precipitation: Kitimat Townsite (73.0 mm/2 days), October 26-27, 1986; Kitimat 2 (115.4 mm/3 days), October 26-28,
1986; Prince Rupert M. Circ (64.4 mm/3 days), October 26-28, 1986; Terrace A (37.6 mm/2 days), October 27-28,
1986.
Source: Environment Canada 1991; Bruce Easton, pers. comm. April 19, 1994. CN Rail Prince George.
The south abutment of the two-truss steel railroad bridge across the Wedeene River washed out. The bridge
tipped in and settled under an angle, necessitating a 2-6 in. (5-15 cm) concrete wedge (Easton, pers. comm.).
On October 28, the Little Wedeene River below Bowbyes Creek and the Kitimat River below Hirsch Creek
recorded maximum instantaneous discharges of 170 and 712 m 3 /s, respectively. On the same day, these rivers
recorded maximum daily discharges of 90.6 and 575 m 3 /s, respectively (Environment Canada 1991).
July 26-August 3, 1987
Event type: Flooding.
Precipitation: Chetwynd (197.6 mm/ month of July); (51.0 mm/12 hours), July 26, 1987; (30.0 mm), subsequent July
precipitation; (63.6 mm/24 hours), August 1, 1987.
Source: The Pioneer, August 4 and 11, 1987; Chetwynd Echo, August 4 and 11, 1987; The Vancouver Sun, September 14,
1987; Nesbitt-Porter 1987; File 55.5020 Chetwynd and South Taylor Flooding-1 st August.
Between July 31-August 1, following weeks of unseasonably heavy and prolonged wet weather in northeastern
British Columbia, intense rainfall resulted in extensive flood damage to watercourses and property. On July 26, Chetwynd
recorded 51 mm of rain in a 12-hour period. It was followed by a light continuous rain, which added another 30 mm. Then on
August 1, 63.6 mm fell in a 24-hour period on saturated soils and creeks with higher than normal levels.
151