Cache Creek trailer park at risk as banks of Bonaparte River slip away

Jul 7, 2020 | 7:40 AM

Keith Bevan moved into the Riverside Mobile Home Park in 2015. Since then, life along the Bonaparte River has been a nightmare.

“We’re more than tired of it. We’re stressed. It’s beyond a farce,” he said. “It’s the owner of the property who’s responsible, and she keeps thinking everyone else is going to fix it for her.”

Bevan’s trailer is among the lucky ones at a high point in the park. But many of his neighbours aren’t. The Bonaparte River is slowly eating away at the bank and closing in on the trailer park. As a result, all 12 residences are on evacuation order until further notice.

“One of the trailer’s undermined by about four feet. It’s got water under it. My other neighbour across, she’s lost about eight feet of her backyard,” noted Bevan.

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The B.C. River Forecast Centre says the sudden rise of the Bonaparte has been thanks to heavy rain.

“We had a wet-weather spell last week with some pretty heavy rain up in the headwaters, and particularly in the Bonaparte it takes a bit of time for that water to travel down,” said head of the B.C. River Forecast Centre Dave Campbell. “So we’re just seeing that the last couple days passing through [Cache Creek].”

About 37 millimetres of rain fell on Canada Day last Wednesday, resulting in two and a half feet of water at Cache Creek Park.

Some of it is from the Bonaparte, but much is from groundwater. They are levels long-time residents have never seen.

“Not this high,” said resident Sonya Canning. “I’ve seen it very high, and I think it was 1989, but never this high.”

Cache Creek Park is nearly three feet under water following recent rain events in the region (Image Credit: CFJC Today)

The flooding has forced the Village of Cache Creek to shut down one of its two wells to avoid groundwater contamination. Residents are now on Stage 4 water restrictions.

“We’re telling people don’t water their lawns, don’t wash their cars,” said Cache Creek communications manager Wendy Coomber. “You can use the water for drinking, for food preparation, for taking your showers. But let’s try and conserve it for now.”

Tourists passing through used the high water on Monday to take their kayak out for a spin at Cache Creek Park.

“I just thought it would be a once-in-a-lifetime kind of thing,” said Katie Johnson, who was on her way home to Salmon Arm with her family. “It might happen again, but I wanted to try it out.”

For Keith, there’s no having fun. It’s another stress-inducing event he doesn’t need. He would like to move, but he says there’s nowhere to go. The hope is the rain subsides and the banks of the Bonaparte stop eroding.

by Chad Klassen

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