15-metre-wide slide closes Arbutus Cove beach
No one hurt; Saanich staff keeping an eye on other bluffs in Gordon Head area
The beach at Arbutus Cove in Saanich will be closed to the public “for the foreseeable future” because of a landslide about 15 metres wide on a private property in the area.
The property is in a bluff about 30 metres high overlooking the beach, said Saanich director of engineering Harley Machielse.
No one was hurt in the slide, he said.
“At the moment, we aren’t able to ascertain what caused it,” Machielse said.
“But likely the heavy rainfall that we’ve been experiencing this winter certainly played a role in terms of the slope instability in the slide.”
Police and fire crews moved in to shut the beach accesses Wednesday night.
Engineering staff also attended and returned Thursday to further examine the site, Machielse said.
He said access points both to the north at Arbutus Cove Park — where a winding staircase leads down to the beach — and to the south at Hollydene Park remain shut down, and a geotechnical engineer is being brought in to look at the situation.
“This is an area of concern,” Machielse said. “We’re going to be notifying the property owners in the area, so they’re familiar that the slide occurred.”
If they have concerns, it will be suggested that they bring in a consultant to do an assessment, he said. They will also be advised of steps that can help slope stability, such as growing native vegetation and refraining from directing rain water over the edge.
There have been no slide issues elsewhere, but staff are keeping watch. “There’s other areas along Gordon Head that have bluff-like slopes similar to this with properties, so they have a similar terrain and topography,” Machielse said.
The closure isn’t having a big effect on beach usage because of winter tide conditions, he said. “Right now, it’s predominantly high tide during the day so there’s not much actual beach exposed,” Machielse said.
The beach is largely “unusable” during that time, he said.
Machielse said measures will remain in place until the municipality has “the comfort that the area is safe for the public.”