HISTORICAL NEWS SEARCH - Government of British Columbia
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HISTORICAL NEWS SEARCH - Government of British Columbia

HISTORICAL NEWS SEARCH - Government of British Columbia HISTORICAL NEWS SEARCH - Government of British Columbia

env.gov.bc.ca
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across the Kitwanga backroad, closing the road for over a week. One vehicle drove off the end and got buried halfway in the mud. Highway 37 between Terrace-Kitimat was closed for about 24 hours by flooding and shoulder washouts. Two kilometres south of the Kitimat River bridge, a one-lane section of 150 m of highway disappeared into the river. The Kitimat River moved to the east, hitting a portion of highway where the embankment had not been riprapped. Tim Gleig, the District of Kitimat director of engineering services, stated that the Kitimat River rose more than 17 ft. (5.1 m) in just over 30 hours by high tide in the afternoon on October 10. On October 10, the Kitimat River below Hirsch Creek recorded a maximum instantaneous discharge of 3,030 m 3 /s and a maximum daily discharge of 2,500 m 3 /s. *2) By October 11, the river levels tapered off. Ministry of Highways district manager John Newhouse estimated the damage to Highway 37 south to Kitimat at $200,000. On October 10, a section of highway near the Lakelse Lake picnic area was closed. Williams Creek flooded into Blackwater Creek. At Blackwater Creek, the culverts could not handle the water, resulting in heavy erosion damage to the gravel road shoulders. On the Kitamaat Village road, only minor shoulder erosions occurred. Near Kitimat, Hirsch Creek Park had water running through and the picnic area in Radley Park was under about 4 ft. (1.2 m) of water. The access road to the sewage treatment outfall was washed out. In localised areas of Kitimat, sewer backups and some problems with surface drainage occurred. Damage to Forest Service Roads (FSR) in the Prince Rupert Forest Region caused by the storm totaled $1,274,000. On the Copper River FSR, extensive damage occurred between Matson Creek-Clore River, causing an estimated $715,000 damage. Major washouts at km 13 and at Hunter Creek, on the Upper Kitimat FSR totaled $220,000 damage. On the Nass-Kinskuch/Kwinatahl, damage to a bridge was estimated at $100,000. On the Nass FSR, the estimated cost was $52,000. Repairs included re-channeling and replacing riprap at km 2 and the Ginmiltkun bridge. Major damage also occurred on the Telkwa FSR, totaling $115,000. Repairs included replacement of 300 m of road at 6.0 km, replacement of 2,000 m 3 of riprap at 12 km, reconstruction of 2,000 m of road at 21 km, and replacement of riprap at Jonas and Cumming creeks. Pacific Northern Gas reported damage to the gas pipeline along the Copper River. Near Tauw Lake in the Telkwa Pass, a massive rockslide damaged the line, causing some $65,000 damage. At Middle Lake a slide blocked the road. From Middle Lake west, the line filled up with water for 4 mi. (6.4 km). At the junction of Limonite Creek and Copper River, the line was exposed for 200 ft. (60 m). Limonite Creek, which had moved its channel over, had to be re-channeled for 900 ft. (270 m) at a cost of $30,000. Cost to replace some river crossing armouring at MP 244 near Summit Lake was estimated at $160,000. At the mouth of the Clore, 300 ft. (90 m) of the line on the west side was exposed. To completely rebuild this section was expected to cost $500,000. Minor damage occurred at 28 km and 15 km on the Copper River Road. Damage to the road at 28 km was estimated at $10,000 (D. Towriss, pers. comm.). On October 10, the Zymoetz River recorded a maximum daily discharge of 1,050 m 3 /s, which is approximately a 35-year return period flood (Sigma Engineering p. 6). Record rainfall also caused drainage problems throughout the Nass Valley. Approximately 360 mm of rain fell in seven days, equaling the monthly average for the region. The flooding in the Nass Valley was described as the “worst since October 1961” (British Columbia Report). *3) In some areas the roads were under more than 1 m of water. Because of flooding along Kitsumkalum and Lava Lake, the road north of Terrace from Dover Road to Greenville was closed. The Nisga’a Highway was flooded at Lava Lake. The Ministry of Forests confirmed that extensive damage was done to the road north of Nass Camp, isolating nearly 3,000 Nass Valley residents in Nass Camp, Greenville, Canyon City, and New Aiyansh. Fresh food was airlifted to the trapped residents by helicopter through the Provincial Emergency Program (PEP). In the largest airlift in PEP’s history, nearly $25,000 worth of groceries was airlifted. A total of 14 flights were made, during which mail and ballots for the provincial election were also delivered. Ministry of Highways officials reported that more than 80% of a 22-km road to Greenville was completely under water. Many washouts occurred, bridge structures were damaged, and other bridges had their approaches washed out. The Ministry of Highways district manager estimated damages to the roads in the Nass Valley to be approximately $500,000. On October 23, the road to Greenville was reported open to traffic. The more than 800 residents of Greenville had been isolated since October 9. A contractor working into the night saved a major bridge over the Cedar River. At one point the level of the Cedar River rose 3 ft. (90 cm) in 15 minutes. In Stewart, the rain fell at an average of 6 mm an hour, totaling 376.6 mm for the duration of the storm. Many basements were flooded, but extensive sandbagging efforts avoided major damage. The heavy rain also caused damage in the Smithers-Telkwa area. The weather station at the Smithers airport recorded 95.3 mm of rain for November 9 and 10. The Telkwa River flooded its banks and carried down trees and other debris. At the confluence with the Bulkley River, standing waves up to 1 m were seen. Flood damage to the Telkwa FSR was estimated at $114,200. A Telkwa family was stranded at their Cottonwoods Flats home for five days after floodwaters washed out their driveway, creating an island. A dike built parallel to the property eight years previous caused the water to back up and then to flood. In order to avoid future problems, officials have indicated that an old river channel will be opened to divert the overflow. Other creeks in the Smithers area impacted by high water levels were Toboggan, Casson, Simpson, Canyon, and Big creeks. Toboggan Creek at the fish hatchery was in imminent danger of flooding. The high water did permanent damage to fish spawning grounds near the Toboggan Creek Fish Hatchery and threatened to flood ponds holding salmon fry. According to hatchery manager Mike O’Neill, that summer’s wild spawn along creeks was wiped out by the floods, which were worse than the ones in 1988. 166

On October 15, the Kispiox River near Hazelton recorded a maximum daily discharge of 977 m 3 /s, breaking the previous all-time high for the period of record of 595 m 3 /s on November 2 (Environment Canada 1991). Residents of the Kispiox Valley along Poplar Park Road were stranded for nearly 24 hours after the road flooded. Others had to leave their homes and many suffered property damage in fields and hay sheds. No other bridges in the upper Kispiox sustained serious damage. The grounds of the Kispiox Valley Community Association were flooded. Bleachers were damaged, picnic tables washed away, and fences were knocked over. On the evening of October 18, a slide occurred below the Old Lakelse Road, approximately 300 m north of the Thornhill Bridge. It was caused by excess water in the subsurface, saturating the clay. The slide, which was about 25 m long at the road and tapered to 20 m at the toe, displaced approximately 1,000 m 3 of material. The slide material dammed up Thornhill Creek, resulting in the flooding of some residential property. A fresh water pipe running under the shoulder of the road was exposed and pulled apart at one joint. In the Kispiox Valley near Hazelton heavy damage to fish eggs was reported. Floodwaters in the Nass River may have wiped out more than half of the salmon eggs already laid that year. The main species affected were pink, chum, and sockeye salmon, spawning in August and September. (Les Jantz, Dept. of Fisheries and Oceans In: Prince Rupert Today). ------------------------------ *1) A solution to avoid the flooding on Greig Avenue would be to reroute the storm sewer at Atwood and Greig avenues to an open ditch near the CNR tracks. *2) Both are all-time high values for the period of record, beating the previous highs of 3,000 and 2,410 m 3 /s, respectively, on November 1, 1978 (Environment Canada 1991). *3) According to Lakalzap band administrator Wallace Clark, the Nass River levels were higher than during the record flood in 1961. The Nisga’a Tribal Council continued to press demands for an audit of logging practices in the Nass Valley to see how clearcut logging had contributed to the flooding. October-November 1991 Event type: Flooding. Precipitation: Not available. Source: Ministry of Environment Lands and Parks File 35000-30 Spring Creek. In October, during a high runoff condition, staff from PEP and MELP removed the Charron log driveway bridge over Spring Creek in Dutch Valley to prevent a debris jam. To provide continued access to the Charron property, two 6-ft. (1,800 mm) temporary culverts were installed. During subsequent high water in November 1991, these temporary culverts were damaged. They were then replaced by three 6-ft. (1,800 mm) and one 4-ft. (1,200 mm) single lengths. The installed culverts did not perform satisfactorily, both from a hydraulics and public safety point of view. A new (rail car) bridge, estimated at $40,000, later replaced the culverts. The four culverts were a barrier to the natural movement of bedload downstream, hindered the passage of fish at low flows and eliminated a portion of viable spawning and rearing habitat. November 10-15, 1991 Event type: Flooding and debris slide. Precipitation: Nass Camp (30.6 mm/1 day), November 10, 1991; Hartley Bay (207.8 mm/3 days), November 10-12, 1991; Falls River (263.0 mm/5 days), November 10-14, 1991; Kildala (202.4 mm/6 days), November 10-15, 1991; Kitimat Townsite (208.8 mm/6 days), November 10-15, 1991; Kemano (68.0 mm/1 day), November 14, 1991; Bella Coola (69.3 mm/1 day), November 15, 1991; Terrace (87.2 mm/1 day), November 15, 1991; Sandspit A (58.0 mm/2 days), November 15-16, 1991. Source: The Terrace Standard, November 20, December 4, 1991; Terrace Review, November 20, 1991; Prince Rupert This Week, November 24, 1991; The Daily News, November 15, 1991; The Observer, January 9 and 16, 1992; Letter, November 26, 1991, B.G. Hirczy (Operations Engineer Ministry of Forests) to Ms. K.A. McDougall (Manager Provincial Emergency Program); Frank Maximchuk (Ministry of Transportation and Highways, Terrace) Fieldnotes Slides South End-Old Skeena Bridge, and Tow Hill Road. A storm with winds of 75-90 mph (112.5-144 km/h) hit the Prince Rupert area. The flight station at Digby Island recorded 37 mm of rain in 12 hours. Many powerlines were blown down and service was still out on the morning of November 15. The power cuts occurred in Port Edward, Ridley Island, Oona River, Kitkatla, Kincolith, and some isolated areas in Prince Rupert. The power outage caused the Skeena Cellulose mill to shut down. Several catch basins plugged up. Campers were blown over and some boats had their hatches blown off. Damage occurred to cars, windows, siding, and roofs. At the Yacht Club, three fingers were broken off the main float. A power cable was pulled from its housing, leaving boats without electricity. At the Fairview floats the dock anchors dragged. The Coast Guard Cutter Point Henry and the fishing vessel Langwood rescued the American seine boat Gayle. 167

On October 15, the Kispiox River near Hazelton recorded a maximum daily discharge <strong>of</strong> 977 m 3 /s, breaking<br />

the previous all-time high for the period <strong>of</strong> record <strong>of</strong> 595 m 3 /s on November 2 (Environment Canada 1991). Residents<br />

<strong>of</strong> the Kispiox Valley along Poplar Park Road were stranded for nearly 24 hours after the road flooded. Others had to<br />

leave their homes and many suffered property damage in fields and hay sheds. No other bridges in the upper Kispiox<br />

sustained serious damage. The grounds <strong>of</strong> the Kispiox Valley Community Association were flooded. Bleachers were<br />

damaged, picnic tables washed away, and fences were knocked over.<br />

On the evening <strong>of</strong> October 18, a slide occurred below the Old Lakelse Road, approximately 300 m north <strong>of</strong><br />

the Thornhill Bridge. It was caused by excess water in the subsurface, saturating the clay. The slide, which was about<br />

25 m long at the road and tapered to 20 m at the toe, displaced approximately 1,000 m 3 <strong>of</strong> material. The slide material<br />

dammed up Thornhill Creek, resulting in the flooding <strong>of</strong> some residential property. A fresh water pipe running under<br />

the shoulder <strong>of</strong> the road was exposed and pulled apart at one joint.<br />

In the Kispiox Valley near Hazelton heavy damage to fish eggs was reported. Floodwaters in the Nass River<br />

may have wiped out more than half <strong>of</strong> the salmon eggs already laid that year. The main species affected were pink,<br />

chum, and sockeye salmon, spawning in August and September. (Les Jantz, Dept. <strong>of</strong> Fisheries and Oceans In: Prince<br />

Rupert Today).<br />

------------------------------<br />

*1) A solution to avoid the flooding on Greig Avenue would be to reroute the storm sewer at Atwood and Greig<br />

avenues to an open ditch near the CNR tracks.<br />

*2) Both are all-time high values for the period <strong>of</strong> record, beating the previous highs <strong>of</strong> 3,000 and 2,410 m 3 /s,<br />

respectively, on November 1, 1978 (Environment Canada 1991).<br />

*3) According to Lakalzap band administrator Wallace Clark, the Nass River levels were higher than during the record<br />

flood in 1961. The Nisga’a Tribal Council continued to press demands for an audit <strong>of</strong> logging practices in the Nass<br />

Valley to see how clearcut logging had contributed to the flooding.<br />

October-November 1991<br />

Event type: Flooding.<br />

Precipitation: Not available.<br />

Source: Ministry <strong>of</strong> Environment Lands and Parks File 35000-30 Spring Creek.<br />

In October, during a high run<strong>of</strong>f condition, staff from PEP and MELP removed the Charron log driveway<br />

bridge over Spring Creek in Dutch Valley to prevent a debris jam. To provide continued access to the Charron<br />

property, two 6-ft. (1,800 mm) temporary culverts were installed. During subsequent high water in November 1991,<br />

these temporary culverts were damaged. They were then replaced by three 6-ft. (1,800 mm) and one 4-ft. (1,200 mm)<br />

single lengths.<br />

The installed culverts did not perform satisfactorily, both from a hydraulics and public safety point <strong>of</strong> view.<br />

A new (rail car) bridge, estimated at $40,000, later replaced the culverts. The four culverts were a barrier to the natural<br />

movement <strong>of</strong> bedload downstream, hindered the passage <strong>of</strong> fish at low flows and eliminated a portion <strong>of</strong> viable<br />

spawning and rearing habitat.<br />

November 10-15, 1991<br />

Event type: Flooding and debris slide.<br />

Precipitation: Nass Camp (30.6 mm/1 day), November 10, 1991; Hartley Bay (207.8 mm/3 days), November 10-12,<br />

1991; Falls River (263.0 mm/5 days), November 10-14, 1991; Kildala (202.4 mm/6 days), November 10-15, 1991;<br />

Kitimat Townsite (208.8 mm/6 days), November 10-15, 1991; Kemano (68.0 mm/1 day), November 14, 1991; Bella<br />

Coola (69.3 mm/1 day), November 15, 1991; Terrace (87.2 mm/1 day), November 15, 1991; Sandspit A (58.0 mm/2<br />

days), November 15-16, 1991.<br />

Source: The Terrace Standard, November 20, December 4, 1991; Terrace Review, November 20, 1991; Prince Rupert<br />

This Week, November 24, 1991; The Daily News, November 15, 1991; The Observer, January 9 and 16, 1992; Letter,<br />

November 26, 1991, B.G. Hirczy (Operations Engineer Ministry <strong>of</strong> Forests) to Ms. K.A. McDougall (Manager<br />

Provincial Emergency Program); Frank Maximchuk (Ministry <strong>of</strong> Transportation and Highways, Terrace) Fieldnotes<br />

Slides South End-Old Skeena Bridge, and Tow Hill Road.<br />

A storm with winds <strong>of</strong> 75-90 mph (112.5-144 km/h) hit the Prince Rupert area. The flight station at Digby<br />

Island recorded 37 mm <strong>of</strong> rain in 12 hours. Many powerlines were blown down and service was still out on the<br />

morning <strong>of</strong> November 15. The power cuts occurred in Port Edward, Ridley Island, Oona River, Kitkatla, Kincolith,<br />

and some isolated areas in Prince Rupert. The power outage caused the Skeena Cellulose mill to shut down. Several<br />

catch basins plugged up. Campers were blown over and some boats had their hatches blown <strong>of</strong>f. Damage occurred to<br />

cars, windows, siding, and ro<strong>of</strong>s. At the Yacht Club, three fingers were broken <strong>of</strong>f the main float. A power cable was<br />

pulled from its housing, leaving boats without electricity. At the Fairview floats the dock anchors dragged. The Coast<br />

Guard Cutter Point Henry and the fishing vessel Langwood rescued the American seine boat Gayle.<br />

167

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