Bluff collapses onto Highway 97 near Summerland, B.C.

The Okanagan has had its fair share of flooding so far this spring and now residents are dealing with another natural accident.

It was a scary sight for vehicles passing through Summerland, B.C. as a landslide covered all four lanes of Highway 97 Monday night.

Around 7 p.m., earth started to fall from one of the silt bluffs located between Summerland and Trout Creek.

Looking more like a cloud of smoke, dust and rubble covered the highway and made its way into the water below.

No vehicles were directly impacted by the falling debris, but it resulted in all four lanes of the highway being closed for several hours.

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The slide engulfed the concrete barriers and sidewalk and was strong enough to push a few of the barriers into Okanagan Lake.

Following an initial geotechnical assessment, crews began to clear the material that had spread across the roadway.

After removing enough debris, crews were able to reopen the highway to single-lane alternating traffic just before 1 a.m.

In a statement, the Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure said the size of the slide was approximately 120 metres long, with a 40-metre section that covered the highway.

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Residents living above the area where the slide came down told Global News that they lost some of their property in the aftermath and some are concerned they may lose more.

However, they are used to the slides, having experienced a few similar incidents near the end of April and the ministry is noticing the trend.

“While this location does not have an extensive history of slides, there was a very small slide at this location a couple of weeks ago that did not affect the highway,” read the statement.

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In a social media post, AIMRoads says they have equipment on standby.

“Once we are given the clear by the assessors, we will begin clean up and get the site cleared as quickly and safely as possible,” read the update.

It’s not known just when the slide will be fully cleared and all lanes will be open.

The ministry says travellers should expect delays when passing through the area and encourages drivers to check DriveBC’s website before they head out.