A slow moving landslide had closed off the only access road into Old Fort, B.C., just south of Fort St. John this past summer (Photo: BC Transportation and Infrastructure / Facebook)

By Canadian Press

Old Fort Slide

Cause of slide near Fort St. John may never be determined

Dec 3, 2020 | 11:48 AM

VICTORIA – A report from British Columbia’s chief inspector of mines says the cause of a slow-moving landslide that has threatened a tiny B.C. community may never be determined.

The steep slope above Old Fort slumped over several days in 2018, tearing out the only road and prompting evacuations in the community of about 150 just outside Fort St. John.

The report, posted to the B.C. government website in October, says despite geotechnical assessments, the root cause of the slide remains “inconclusive.”

The first cracks in the earth were noticed in September 2018 at an active gravel pit at the top of the slope where work remains suspended after parts of it slipped 10 metres within hours.

The study says it’s not clear if a cause “will ever be determined with certainty,” but that the pit’s stockpile of gravel combined with natural slope instability and rain that was 44 per cent above average may all have been factors.

The report makes four findings, including one calling on the Ministry of Energy Mines and Petroleum Resources to issue an alert aimed at improving industry awareness of geohazard risks at other B.C. gravel pits, reminding them to consider and plan for those risks.

(The Canadian Press)