New worries at Red Wing
Anew concern has emerged just north of Penticton at Red Wing Resorts, where a local state of emergency was declared Tuesday night. Besides the obvious threat from a swollen Okanagan Lake, officials are also now worried about the migration of groundwater underneath the community of 350 homes.
Dale Kronebusch, emergency services supervisor for the Regional District of Okanagan-Similkameen, said the lake’s projected crest of 343.5 metre above sea level is about the same height as land at the base of the silt bluffs on the western edge of the resort.
If groundwater spreads that far and undermines the bluffs, they could crumble and damage houses above and below, he explained.
Kronebusch said a geotechnical engineer was expected on site Wednesday to assess the situation, which could take weeks to unfold.
In the meantime, the threat from wave action on Okanagan Lake is being mitigated by sandbag defences along the community’s waterfront.
“I believe that once we get (the sandbag wall) designed and built to the standard we want it to that the water won’t come in,” said Kronebusch.
“But I’m not so sure on the water table because it can accumulate the water on the back of (the dam) and start flowing from that side.”
The emergency declaration – issued jointly by the RDOS and Penticton Indian Band, on whose reserve much of Red Wing is located – will allow groundwater monitoring experts to set up on site and take whatever steps are necessary to mitigate the threat.
Kronebusch said crews are also re-evaluating the situation in Naramata to assess if sandbag walls are high enough there and make any adjustments needed.
Across the water in Penticton, crews are continually tinkering with defences to guard against Okanagan Lake, which has risen little since the weekend.
“We’re just adapting all our protection daily to what the risk is. The water is rising slowly so we keep adapting our infrastructure to that,” said city manager Peter Weeber.
The area of greatest concern is the Penticton Yacht Club and Marina, where the lake is expected to overtake a temporary dam and flood the parking lot.
“But they’ve already over the weekend built a fallback position for spillage into the parking lot to protect the main building,” Weeber added.
Some infrastructure around the Penticton Lakeside Resort, such as a pump station, boat rental office and walking pier, is also under threat, but Weeber said damage won’t be assessed until the lake recedes.
He estimates the city’s flood response to date has cost $500,000, which will be reimbursed by Emergency Management BC.
There was no cost Wednesday for dozens of students from Penticton Secondary School who volunteered their time on the sandbag brigade at Red Wing.
Rylee McDonald, whose Grade 10 gym class lent its services to the flood-stricken community for people age 40 and up, said she found the work gratifying.
“These people might not be able to do it for themselves,” McDonald explained.
Red Wing manager Don Kelly said he appreciated the help, and described the mood of residents as “anxious.”
“I think we’re pretty well-protected (from the lake) now,” he said. “It’s the winds that will kill us.”
As of noon Wednesday, the lake level was hovering around 343.25 metres, virtually unchanged from the same time Sunday, according to Environment Canada data.
Last week, the District of Summerland declared local states of emergency in two parts of that community due to groundwater overtaking electrical equipment.