Heavy rains late last week caused a landslide at a popular walking trail in the Davis Bay area, flooded a roadway in Secret Cove and partially submerged a bridge in Cliff Gilker Park.
A total of 36.9 mm of rain fell on Jan. 21 and Jan. 22, according to the government of Canada website, and with that rain part of the Chapman Creek walking trail collapsed.
The popular walking route to Chapman Creek Falls has been seeing steady erosion for years, but District of Sechelt communications manager Connie Jordison said no work to address the issue had been undertaken by the District.
“There has never been a full assessment of the trail and the area to determine what, if any, action would be both safe and effective in addressing trail erosion,” Jordison said.
The trail is no longer safe, due to the falling away of a chunk of earth near the trail’s entrance, which was discovered by District staff in the late afternoon of Jan. 22. The trail was closed that day at about 5 p.m.
“District staff are in contact with a biological consultant and Department of Fisheries and Oceans regarding repair options,” Jordison noted.
She said the trail would remain closed to the public until the District could ensure it was safe for use once again.
In a separate incident, high water in Cliff Gilker Park overtook what was left of a broken bridge across Clack Creek.
The bridge was broken in December by a falling tree, resulting in the closure of the walking trail. Plans were to remove the damaged bridge this week. However, because of high rains and poor weather, the removal was postponed, said Trevor Fawcett, Parks Planning Coordinator with the Sunshine Coast Regional District (SCRD).
“We hope to be able to remove it next week, weather dependent,” Fawcett said.
“The bridge is not in any danger of washing away. The water seems to be running right over it.”
Meanwhile in Secret Cove, homeowner Michelle McCartney and her partner Paul Meriam have been dealing with a major road washout that’s five feet deep in spots and located just steps from their doorway.
The Rolston Creek roadway (off San Souci Road) flooded on Jan. 21 under heavy rains, as the culvert underneath the forest service road (FSR) is plugged solid with dirt and debris.
McCartney phoned the SCRD and the Ministry of Trans-portation and Infrastructure to deal with the problem, but both said the roadway wasn’t their responsibility.
McCartney and Meriam were left to deal with the issue themselves and devised a dam that is diverting the water for now.
“But the washout has made the road almost impassable,” McCartney said, noting the roadway leads to the area’s water reservoir.
The improperly drained water is also making its way to Buccaneer Marina, which, McCartney said “is turning into a mud pit.”
McCartney said she felt like she was given the runaround by local officials and was recently told to contact the Ministry of Forests, Lands and Natural Resource Operations in Powell River to request a fix.
“But why should I have to call Powell River to get something fixed here? I don’t live in Powell River,” McCartney said.
Contacted Wednesday, Ministry of Forests, Lands and Natural Resource Operations public affairs officer Greig Bethel said the ministry was aware of the issue and would be meeting with SCRD representatives onsite this week.
“Ministry staff looked into a similar issue at this location in March 2014, and it appears there is a Sunshine Coast Regional District waterline under the FSR at this location,” Bethel said.
When asked who McCartney should have contacted to deal with the issue, Bethel said the SCRD was the right body to report it to.
He noted other forest road concerns can be reported to the Sunshine Coast Natural Resource District office at 604-485-0700 or by emailing [email protected]
