To Read the Old Fort Emergency Plan, Click Here

Ministry of Transportation & Infrastructure (MoTI)

See our MoTI page for the current status, archive of status reports, photos and more.

2020 Old Fort Landslide Incident

Help us reach you quickly in an emergency: To be notified of urgent or emergency information by SMS text, and/or email and/or a voice phone call , sign up as an Old Fort resident on the North East BC Emergency & Public Alerts system. Be sure you sign up with your Old Fort address, or update your subscription to the alert system if you didn’t register your address – We can’t help you if we can’t reach you.

Update for Old Fort residents – October 26, 2020

Following the landslides of 2018 and 2020 which affected access to the community of Old Fort, the Peace River Regional District (PRRD) committed to providing residents with a comprehensive report to help gain knowledge of geohazards and associated risks, as well as to help the  PRRD  with the consideration of potential risk mitigation strategies for the identified high-risk areas.

In December 2019, the PRRD contracted Tetra Tech, a leading provider of engineering services worldwide, to complete the report. Tetra Tech has made good progress, but the process requires very extensive research and technical analysis, and the PRRD and the consultants want to make sure that the report is as comprehensive and informative as possible so that the PRRD, Old Fort residents and other stakeholders have the best possible information to guide them going forward.

Originally promised by September 2020, the complexities of the research and analysis mean the report will not be available until the first quarter of 2021. We understand that residents are extremely anxious to receive this information and we apologize for this extended timeline.

Tetra Tech is moving as quickly as possible to provide the report without compromising the quality of the research and technical analysis required. We are committed to sharing the report with you as soon as we can. Thank you.

Chair Brad Sperling

Professional Assessments of the Slide and Surrounding Areas

Peace River Regional District (PRRD) requested commentary from geotechnical professionals responsible for monitoring and evaluating the Old Fort Road and slide, surrounding crown lands, and the community.

Ministry of Transportation – Road and Slide Impacts On The Road
Currently the instrumentation is showing negligible movement for all parts of the slide and the road is safe for public use. The ravelling that is occurring on the steep scarp beside the ridge will continue but any failure there would not be able to make it down to the road. It will land on the top part of the flow part of the slide. The only thing that the road will do in the future is move towards the river if the flow part of the slide re-activates the same way it has done for the last two episodes. It is near impossible to predict when the slide will start moving again, but the instrumentation is there and will continue to be monitored. There is nothing to indicate anything catastrophic would happen to the road.

Ministry of Forests, Lands, Natural Resource Operations & Rural Development – Surrounding Crown Lands
Ongoing monitoring of the eastern landslide complex continues to show negligible displacement. Ravelling of the upper scarps will likely be restricted to the upper part of the earth flow, and movement of the main slide is generally directed away from the community. Should the earthflow reactivate, peak movement is not expected to be greater than 3 to 4 meters per hour.

Tetra Tech – On behalf of PRRD, for the Old Fort community
Tetra Tech is of the opinion at this time that the risk to the community posed by recent Old Fort slide movements is low. When slide movements occur, they are generally directed away from the community. East or southeast components of the movements are typically smaller-scale and slower-moving. No reactivation of the West Slide mass has been observed. Fresh onset of movement is difficult to predict and circumstances can change quickly, depending on external factors such as water ingress, changed groundwater flow patterns, weather, anthropogenic processes, etc. Despite this, should renewed movements occur, and should such movements pose a risk to the community, sufficient time to evacuate or respond would be available, provided that ongoing slide monitoring systems remain active and regularly monitored, and provided that alert/alarm notifications are distributed to us and the Regional District.

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Old Fort Landslide 2018 and 2020 Incidents

Correspondence

EOC Structure & Purpose

EOC Purpose   EOC Structure

Provincial Assistance Programs

Disaster Financial Assistance

Disaster Financial Assistance (DFA) is a provincial program to help individuals and local governments recover from uninsurable disasters. The DFA Program comes into effect when residents cannot access insurance for events that are uninsurable, such as the Old Fort Landslide. DFA can compensate individuals for 80% of eligible claims, after the first $1,000 to a maximum claim of $300,000. DFA is for essential items only. Disaster Financial Assistance 1-888-257-4777 OR email dfa@gov.bc.ca OR website www.gov.bc.ca/disasterfinancialassistance

Property & Housing Questions

Insurance

If you have questions about your home or tenant insurance, call your insurance representative directly or call the Insurance Bureau of Canada toll-free at 1 844-2-ASK-IBC.

Property Values

If residents have questions about how the slide may affect property values, contact BC Assessment. BC Assessment Authority at 1-866-825-8322..

Community Resources

Mental Health Support Line

To reach a mental health support worker trained to provide emotional and mental health support 24 hours a day: Call 310-6789 (do not add an area code before the number) or check out their website at: http://www.crisislines.bc.ca/services

Employee Assistance Programs

Your employer may have an employee assistance program (EAP). EAP is a work-based intervention program designed to identify and assist employees in resolving personal problems (e.g., marital, financial or emotional problems; family issues; substance/alcohol abuse) that may be adversely affecting the employee’s performance. Please contact your employer to see if this service is available.

HealthLink BC

To access free, non-emergency health information for anyone in your family, including mental health information. You can also speak to a registered nurse about symptoms you’re worried about, or talk with a pharmacist about medication questions. Call 811 or visit www.healthlinkbc.ca

Community Contacts

Police/Ambulance Emergency      9-1-1
Police-Non-Emergency                  250-787-8140

Pacific Northern Gas                     1-800-663-1173

BC Hydro                                        1-888-769 3766

Telus                                               1-800-663-0333

Yellowhead Road and Bridge       1-888-883-6688

Fort St John Health Unit               250-263-6000

Health Link BC                               8-1-1

Mental Health Support Line          310-6789   (do not add an area code before the number)

Talk In Tough Times                       1-877-427-4884

BC Assessment Authority             1-866-825-8322

Insurance Bureau of Canada         1-844-227-5422

Disaster Financial Assistance        1-888-257-4777

Emergency Info BC                          250-952-4913

FSJ Women’s Resource Society     250-787-1121

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