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City of Kamloops orders small evacuation due to unstable hillside

Possible landslide in B.C. forces small evacuation

KAMLOOPS, B.C. — The sopping spring weather has forced the evacuation of a neighbourhood in Kamloops and washed out a road in the Shuswap.

The City of Kamloops says in a statement that there has been a "significant change in the landscape" and pooling water has created the risk of a landslide in the area along the Yellowhead Highway.

A local state of emergency has been declared and an evacuation order remains up for 22 people who live in nine homes near the slope.

In the Shuswap, about 100 kilometres east of Kamloops, more than 300 homes have been cut off after the main road leading to the community was washed out.

Shuswap Emergency Officer Ryan Nitchie says residents in the community are seasonal and most homes are currently unoccupied.

He says crews are working to detour the rushing creek so that Eagle Bay Road can be repaired and reopened.

City officials in Kamloops said in a statement Friday that geotechnical experts have been monitoring the hillside for a potential landslide for several weeks.

Additional equipment is being brought in this weekend to provide readings from 10 locations on the hillside to determine the stability of the slope, the statement said.

The evacuated residents are receiving help from city officials and security has been set up to control access to the homes.

"We understand the evacuated residents are concerned and we are striving to keep them informed with accurate information," said emergency operations spokeswoman Tammy Robertson. "We are hoping to get them back to their homes as soon as possible."

No major damage or injuries have been reported.

(The Canadian Press, CHNL)

 

The Canadian Press