Update on Beatton River Landslide

Following a landslide on Monday night due to heavy rain, the Peace River Regional District issued a warning for residents to stay away from the Beatton River.

Greig Bethel of the Ministry of Forests, Lands, and Natural Resource Operations confirmed that this ministry, Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure, and the BC Oil and Gas Commission inspected the site fully on Tuesday, and now it is difficult to forecast when this slide will become inactive, as more slipping could occur any time.

“This landslide was a natural event and this is not the first time it has happened,” Bethel wrote in an e-mail to Energetic City. “The Beatton River and its tributaries are inherently unstable and occasionally subject to large, rapid landslides moving on low gradients.”

According to the Ministry, flooding was minimal and impact to resource users and residents appears to be minimal overall.

He adds that an immediately impacted landowner at the slide area has erected an electric fence adjacent to the site, to keep livestock safely away.

The Province is echoing the PRRD in asking people to stay away from the Beatton River at this time – from the slide area all the way down to the meeting of the Beatton and Peace rivers.

Bethel said that the Cecil Lake Bridge is well above the Beatton River, and was not impacted by this event, but the bridge site is being monitored.