HISTORICAL NEWS SEARCH - Government of British Columbia

*2) Slope gradient and distance estimates as presented are derived from 1:20,000 TRIM topographic maps (Schwab et
al. 2003).
Late December 2000
Event type: Ice jam flooding.
Precipitation: Not applicable.
Source: Ministry of Environment, Lands and Parks file 035050-30/2000. Ice jam Bulkley River.
At the end of December, an ice jam in the Bulkley River caused flooding near Smithers. Between Raymond
Road and Gidding’s Field, the river was completely covered with debris. The water level at the CN Rail line at Tatlow
came to within 0.3-0.5 m of the tracks while adjacent fields were flooded. At Dohler Flats, the icejam remained
unchanged.
June 10-13, 2001
Event type: Flooding.
Precipitation: Not available.
Source: Ministry of Environment files; Message June 13, Bruce McGonigal to Eva Boehringer; Ministry of
Transportation. Issue Alert. Peace River North. June 14, 2001.
During the second week of June, extreme precipitation caused many rivers in the Peace River area to
overflow their banks. Flooding caused significant damage to at least three roads in the area: Cypress Road, 65 km
northwest of Fort St. John; Farrell Creek and Upper Halfway Road between Fort St John-Hudson’s Hope.
Two major washouts of about 200-300 m in length, one at each bridge, made Cypress Road impassable. *1)
At the Cypress Creek bridge, the end fills were completely gone. Repairs were estimated at $250-300,000. According
to one local resident, this was the “worst flooding to have occurred here since 1965.”
On the Upper Halfway Road, another substantial washout of 500-1,000 m in length obliterated the road and
its right-of-way. Water flows at the Halfway River bridge were high and the approaches appeared to be holding.
Repairs were estimated at $500-600,000. Repairs to a major culvert failure on Farrell Creek Road were estimated at
$400-600,000.
On Highway 29, ten downpipes were demolished. Repairs were estimated at $200,000.There were two new
slides on Highway 29 at the Halfway and three more three more at Cache Creek hill with an estimated repair cost of $1
million. Many other significant washouts occurred along this route. As the water table changed, more slides were
anticipated over the coming weeks. Significant damage was done to private roads, driveways, oil and gas facilities and
roads.
Around June 13 near Smithers, two or three blocked culverts caused substantial flooding on the last 2 km on
Driftwood Road. A piece of road washed out around 3 km from the gate.
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*1) The Cypress Creek Road is 44 km long, with three bridges and has a number of short side roads attached to it.
While the first 22 km and the first bridge remained intact, about 12 families were left isolated beyond this point.
(Ministry of Transportation). There are no alternate routes for Cypress, Upper Halfway or Farrell Creek roads.
Late December 2001-early January 2002
Event type: Icejam flooding.
Precipitation: Not applicable.
Source: Monty Miedriech, January 8, 2001. Updated Bulkley River ice-jam flood response team. December 22 (2001)
update.
At the end of December, icejams on the Bulkley River caused flood concern in the Telkwa-Smithers area
from Tatlow to Dohler Flats. On December 21, CN Rail removed ice from around their tracks at location 9 km on
Tatlow Road and was closely monitoring the situation on December 22. On that day, the river appeared more stable. At
Dohler Flats, the water levels were down 30 cm compared to the previous day. However, water levels in the Raymond
Road-9 km on Tatlow area were still high. At the Tatlow icejam location, the water was only 30-60 cm below the CN
Rail tracks.
April 13-14, 2002
Event type: Flooding.
Precipitation: Not available.
Source: The Prince George Citizen, April 15 and 17, 2002; CBC newscasts April 14, 15 and 16, 2002.
Around April 13-14, Prince George reported 10 cm of snow mixed with rain. The unusually heavy snow and
rain created havoc outside Prince George city limits. In two days, the area had received 32 mm of precipitation, more
than the average for the entire month of April. Early on April 14, a new weather system added to the flooding which
had already begun in the rural areas. During the previous 24 hours, at least two homes, both on Johnson Road near the
Prince George airport flooded. A couple of minor mudslides were reported in the region. During the late night of April
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