25 homes evacuated in Penticton due to potential rockslide concerns

Residents of 25 homes in a Penticton neighbourhood have been asked to temporarily go elsewhere as crews evaluate the threat of a potential rockslide.

The City of Penticton also issued a local state of emergency as of Tuesday evening.

“Earlier today (City of Penticton) staff were informed of a large rock that has the potential to break off, posing a potential threat to nearby residences,” Emergency Operations Centre director Kristen Dixon said in a press release.

“Staff immediately had the site reviewed by a professional geotechnical engineer and following that, made the decision to evacuate the potentially impacted properties. The city is working to further assess the area, and develop plans to remove the rock fall risk.”

The homes are located in the northwest corner of the Pleasant Valley Mobile Home Park on Penticton Avenue.

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Residents were informed by members of the Penticton Fire Department and Bylaw Services of the potential threat earlier Tuesday afternoon. Emergency Support Services has been activated at Fire Hall 2 at 285 Dawson Ave.

“Residents are asked to go down to the ESS centre and register as this will allow us to continue to update them on developments and what next steps may be necessary to deal with the hazard,”  Dixon said.

A local state of emergency has not yet been declared, though the city’s Emergency Operations Centre has been activated to Level 1 and continues to evaluate the needed response level.

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