Rainy weather has made some of Salt Spring’s roads dangerous to navigate.
According to the weather station at Gulf Islands Secondary School, from Jan. 27 until Jan. 29, 99.4 mm of rain fell on the island. January had already been a relatively wet month, but half of the monthly rainfall occurred over the weekend.
Rainwater flooded areas of Beddis Road, North End Road, Cusheon Lake Road, Arnell Road and near Weston Lake. The 500 block of Isabella Point Road experienced a slide that saw the road reduced to one lane on Monday. A seaside area in the 700 block of Walker’s Hook Road was washed out by what nearby resident Scott Simmons described as a “massive amount of water.”
Salt Spring Transit announced Monday night that it would stop providing bus services on Walker’s Hook Road until further notice due to the washout. To compensate, Route 5 Fernwood will run along North End Road to Fernwood Road, Walker’s Hook, Maliview and back to North End Road.
On Tuesday evening, Mainroad Contracting advised that Walker’s Hook Road would be closed between the 600 and 650 block.
The bank between Walker’s Hook Road and the ocean had been completely washed away by the water in one spot, leaving only a few centimetres of asphalt from the shoulder hanging over the edge. The stretch of road has been a problem for years, with the bank washing out after severe winter storms.
For more on this story, see the Jan. 31, 2018 issue of the Gulf Islands Driftwood newspaper, or subscribe online.