CSRD warns residents of potential mudslides in wildfire-scarred areas

SALMON ARM, B.C. — As soggy weather soaks the BC Interior this week, the Columbia Shuswap Regional District (CSRD) is warning residents of potential landslides and flooding.

The district says the wildfires that have scorched the earth and taken away trees and vegetation over recent years have made the land particularly vulnerable.

In a bulletin posted to its website, the CSRD says when rain combines with spring snowmelt, debris flows and floods can be triggered in wildfire-scarred areas.

Warnings of debris flows or floods include an abrupt change in the volume of stream flow, a change in water colour to muddy brown, trees cracking or breaking, ground shaking and loud noises such as “trees falling or a roar like a train.”

The district has printed a series of preparedness tips here.