90-metre landslide shuts road north of Lake Okanagan Resort, fire chief says

British ColumbiaTwo landslides, including a massive 90-metre slide, have shut down a road north of Lake Okanagan Resort, according to fire officials.No injuries or structure damage reported, according to Wilson’s Landing Fire DepartmentCBC News · Posted: Apr 02, 2025 12:45 PM EDT | Last Updated: 3 hours agoA drone photo taken April 2, 2025, of the landslide that swept over Westside Road north of Kelowna, B.C., the night before. (William LaPierre)Two landslides, including a massive 90-metre slide, have shut down a road north of Lake Okanagan Resort, according to fire officials.Paul Zydowicz, chief of the Wilson’s Landing Fire Department, said the slides came down at around 10 p.m. Tuesday. He described one slide as being about 90 metres wide and nearly two metres deep.”It’s quite the swath of mud that came off the mountain,” he said in an interview.DriveBC said Westside Road remained closed Wednesday morning due to the slide south of Denison Road. It’s unclear when it will reopen.Zydowicz said there are no reports of injuries or structure damage. Two landslides came down north of Lake Okanagan Resort on Tuesday, April 1, 2025, shutting down Westside Road, according to Paul Zydowicz, chief of the Wilson’s Landing Fire Department. (Wilson’s Landing Firefighters Association)He said he believes the landslides were caused by the amount of rain the area got in March.”There’s flows in the area that we haven’t experienced in the past. Creeks have started running that normally don’t run,” Zydowicz said.⛔️REMINDER – #WestsideRd Closed due to a landslide south of Denison Rd. ℹhttps://t.co/rPiwpfzQ9U #WestKelowna #Westbank #Kelowna #BCHwy97 #BCHwy97C #Vernon—@DriveBCThe Central Okanagan Emergency Operations said crews will be released Wednesday, then the site will be turned over to the Ministry of Transportation.”We appreciate the patience of residents and motorists,” said Sally Ginter, director of the Emergency Operations Centre, in a statement. The operations centre said the area of the slide was “significantly impacted” by the 2023 McDougall Creek Wildfire.”Properties located in the post-wildfire areas are subject to a higher risk of potential debris flow runout and upstream diversion,” it said.With files from Daybreak South