CSRD landslide risk zones

By Sydney Chisholm

Bush creek east FIRE

One year after devastating Bush Creek East wildfire, Shuswap residents warned of landslide potential

Jun 14, 2024 | 6:00 PM

LEE CREEK, B.C. – In 2023, the devastating Bush Creek East wildfire ripped through the Columbia Shuswap Regional District (CSRD), displacing citizens and destroying much of the trees and vegetation native to the area.

Without trees to absorb rainwater, the CSRD says water runs off much more rapidly, taking soil and other debris with it.

“We know there is something that is going to happen. The question is, now or next year? I don’t know,” said Ellen Hammer, a Celista resident. “I don’t want to be too nervous right now, but I need to be prepared, for sure.”

Geoscientists from BGC Engineering, contracted by the CSRD, are urging residents to have a ‘go bag’ ready.

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“These two hazards were here before – they weren’t caused by the fire. They’ve just been exacerbated by the fire,” explained principal geoscientist Kris Holm, “so when watersheds burn, water runs off more quickly. The routes can hold less vegetation. And so these alluvial fans did have debris flows or debris flow has before. It’s just been elevated and it will continue to be a little higher for the next 2 to 5 years after the fire.”

Regional fire chief and CSRD protective services manager Sean Coubough says individual preparation is key.

“The difficulty with this is they can hit without a warning,” said Coubough. “We may get little or no warning that one is going to come down, so there’s a real a very real threat to life safety from these events.”

Residents are encouraged to stay up-to-date with the Alertables app and pay attention to weather forecasts so they can evacuate before one of these events occurs.

“These debris flows and landslides can happen within a couple of minutes of intense rainfall,” explained senior Geoscientist Carie-Ann Lau, adding that by the time you can hear the storm, it’s already too late. “Being prepared for that event, knowing where the different hazard zones are, knowing what to do in the event that they hear or see a debris flow.”

Lau recommends moving to higher ground in the event there is no time to evacuate.

“They’re not able to evacuate ahead of time, going upstairs in their house to get themselves in a place where they would be safer — not free from harm, but safer from that event,” Lau added.

The CSRD debris flow map can be found here.