An evacuation order for 25 homes in Penticton, B.C., remains in place as a potential rockslide poses threats to nearby residents.
The City of Penticton declared a local state of emergency on Wednesday after it found out a massive rock had the potential to break off. On Wednesday, city staff, geotechnical engineers and rock-removal specialists were on site evaluating the next options for the unstable rock.
“With the assessment complete, we’re now able to begin the steps toward stabilizing the site and ensuring residents are safe in their homes,” said the city’s emergency operations centre director Kristen Dixon.
The properties are located in the northwest corner of the Pleasant Valley Mobile Home Park.
Gerry Gilligan, a resident of the mobile home park not affected by the evacuation, said this isn’t the first time the area has been subject to an evacuation order.
He said his side of the park was evacuated about a decade ago owing to a similar rock hazard on the adjacent mountain. Residents stayed in hotels for less than a week while the city reinforced the site.
“It’s not a stable area. It never has been,” Mr. Gilligan said in an interview.
He noted that residents of the park are mostly seniors.
The owners of the mobile homes are aware of the risks, and protections are reinforced as part of regular maintenance, said property manager Deborah Moore.
She said geotechnical firm Rock Glen Consulting was recently on site to build additional retaining walls and make recommendations for minimizing debris.
She said an engineer who was on site Monday evening noticed some movement in an area of the mountain face and reported it to the city.
Mr. Gilligan, a resident of the park for 20 years, said he didn’t think anyone was concerned about that rock until it was flagged to the city, except for him.
“I could see it over time. You could see it’s not stable,” he said.
Penticton city crews have begun the first step in the process of stabilizing the site, which is raising the retaining wall that is currently in place to provide protection against any potential rock fall. Once that work is completed Wednesday, the next steps will be undertaken.
“Our hope is that once the wall is extended, we will be able to reduce the evacuation order, but we won’t make that decision until tomorrow,” Ms. Dixon said in a news release on Wednesday.
According to the release, 37 people have registered with the city’s emergency support services as a result of the evacuation order.
Earlier this month, a rockslide near Keremeos, a village in B.C.’s southern Interior, forced an evacuation of two properties – a mobile home park and an RV park – and closed a portion of Highway 3. About 30 structures were affected.
The slide also triggered a state of emergency in the area and led to a power outage affecting more than 100 people. The Regional District of Okanagan-Similkameen rescinded the order a day later.
Greg Bonderud, RDOS emergency program co-ordinator, said on Wednesday the district is awaiting the final report from the geotechnical engineer who was contracted to perform a risk assessment and determine the cause of the rockfall on Nov. 5.
He said any time there are certain conditions, there is a chance for rockfall to occur throughout the region, especially when there is a freeze/thaw cycle. He encouraged residents to be aware of the hazards in their area and have a grab-and-go bag ready in case there is a need to evacuate their homes at a moment’s notice.
Xiao Xu