HISTORICAL NEWS SEARCH - Government of British Columbia

CNR reported rock and snowslides at Mile 28.7, 35.0, 45.0, and 50.0, and washouts in four locations. The
rail line was closed for 28 hours.
November 21-24, 1957
Event type: Flooding and fatal snow avalanche.
Precipitation: Sandspit A (49.0 mm/2 days), November 21-22, 1957; Kemano (99.3 mm/2 days), November 21-22,
1957; Aiyansh (104.9 mm/2 days), November 21-22, 1957; Falls River (204.2 mm/2 days), November 21-22, 1957;
Ocean Falls (192.0 mm/2 days), November 21-22, 1957; Prince Rupert (135.9 mm/2 days), November 21-22, 1957;
Kitimat Townsite (125.7 mm/2 days), November 21-22, 1957; Langara (132.1 mm/3 days), November 21-23, 1957;
Kitimat (215.1 mm/3 days), November 21-22, 24, 1957, Falls River (475.0 mm/9 days) November 21-29, 1957.
Source: Prince Rupert Daily News, November 22, 23, 25, 26, 27 and 30, December 2, 3, 4, 5, 9 and 10, 1957; The
Northern Sentinel, November 22, 25, 26, 27 and 28, 1957; The Sunday Sun, November 23, 1957; Eisbacher and Clague
1981; Evans 1982; Clague 1984; Trenhaile 1998 (p. 83); Letter, October 3, 1958, H. J. Kelsall (Dist. Eng. Prince
Rupert) to Research and Development Eng. Victoria. B.C. Ministry of Transportation and Highways, Terrace.
Prince Rupert recorded 3.96 in. (100.6 mm) of rain in 18 hours or 5 in. (127.0 mm) in 36 hours. *1) The
storm was accompanied with gales up to 60 mph (96.6 km/h). Prince Rupert suffered heavy storm and rain damage.
The long distance telephone, telegraph, and teletype wires to The Daily News all went out. The lines were cut in four
places from 1-14 mi. (1.6-22.4 km) east of Prince Rupert.
On November 22 at noon, a slide on Mount Oldfield above Prince Rupert swept three houses into Oldfield
Creek, killing seven people. The movement was rapid and lasted about 3-4 minutes. It was approximately 1,200 ft.
(360 m) long and 600 ft. (180 m) wide with about 3 ft. (90 cm) of overburden over steeply sloping smooth rock.
According to The Daily News, the slide measured approximately 300 ft. x 100 ft. (90 x 30 m). The debris completely
covered a section of road and the remains of a number of houses in which the victims were trapped. There had been
continuous heavy rain, with 4.25 in. (108.0 mm) immediately before the slide.
On November 23, The Sunday Sun, The Colonist and The Times all erroneously reported eight people killed
by the slide. Subsequently, several authors (Eisbacher and Clague 1981; Evans 1982; Clague 1984 and Trenhaile
1998) have quoted this wrong number. The first two victims were found on December 2. On December 9, three
victims were still unaccounted for. By December 10, the City of Prince Rupert had spent close to $15,000 on the
search. Financial aid was promised to help defray the costs of the search and rehabilitation of the disaster site.
Highway 16 between Prince Rupert-Terrace was closed for several days. Several washouts were reported.
At Prudhomme Lake the road was flooded with 2-4 ft. (0.6-1.2 m) of water. Flooding occurred at Scree Creek and the
Delta Creek bridge washed out.
Near Port Edward at the Watson Island pulp mill, a washout occurred on the rail line. This caused a
westbound passenger train to derail near the terminal point of Pacific, 12 mi. (19.2 km) west of Terrace. The engine
and two express cars left the tracks. Considerable damage was done to the equipment but there were no injuries.
During the period November 21-25, Kitimat reported over 6 in. (150 mm) of rain. High winds occurred in
Kitimat Arm. At least 10 yachts and motorboats that were tied up to the floating pier were blown ashore or away. The
wire and telephone service were disrupted, cutting the communications between Kitimat-Vancouver. Street runoff
problems occurred and basements were flooded. The Nechako area sustained heavy flood damage. In the Shop Easy
Food store a lot of food products were damaged. The small concrete bridge between Anderson-Moore, leading to the
golf and yacht clubs, was damaged. The footings of the temporary pedestrian bridge in the Kildala area were loosened
by the water, threatening to collapse the bridge.
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*1) In November, Prince Rupert recorded 23 days with rain totaling 14.33 in. (364.0 mm), the highest since November
1953 when 15.66 in. (397.8 mm) of rain were recorded. (Prince Rupert Daily News, December 4, 1957).
December 2-8, 1957
Event type: Debris slides and snow avalanches.
Precipitation: Kitimat Townsite (13.0 mm/1 day)(max. temp. 10.0 o C), December 2, 1957; Bella Coola (210.4 mm/7
days), December 2-7, 1957; Kemano (125.0 mm/3 days), December 5-7, 1957; Aiyansh (46.8 mm/2 days), December
6-7, 1957; Kemano (97.8 mm/1 day), December 7, 1957; Namu (109.7 mm/1 day), December 7, 1957; Ocean Falls
(287.6 mm/2 days), December 7-8, 1957.
Source: Prince Rupert Daily News, December 9, 1957; The Interior News, December 12, 1957; The Northern Sentinel,
October 30, 1958; Stethem and Schaerer 1980 (p. 21); Adam Charneski, pers. comm. July 1991, Line Foreman, Alcan,
Kitimat; Ramsey 1971 (p. 161); Stethem and Schaerer 1980; Kendrick 1987.
The storm followed the November 21-24 rain-on-snow event. On December 2, Ocean Falls recorded 216
mm of rain in 24 hours. Near Ocean Falls, two large avalanches of mixed snow and mud crossed the Martin Valley
road.
Slides cut highway and rail connections between Prince Rupert-Terrace. District engineer H.J. Kelsall
reported four slides between Mile 49-50 and a fifth one approximately 35 mi. (56 km) east of Prince Rupert. Traffic
was interrupted from midnight December 7 until 10 p.m. on December 9. The slides also delayed three trains. On
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