Truck, Trailer and Excavator in Pillar Lake
Last updated on November 10, 2023Disclaimer:
- Information provided is based on reports received by Emergency Management and Climate Readiness (EMCR).
- Information provided is considered to be current at the time of posting, but is subject to change
Incident description
| Incident Date | November 7, 2023 |
|---|---|
| Name | DGIR: 234346 |
| Source | Truck entering Pillar Lake |
| Nearest Community | Falkland, BC |
| Spilled Content | Fuel/Oil |
| Who is involved | Ministry of Environment and Climate Change Strategy (ENV), Okanagan Nation Alliance, Okanagan Indian Band, Adams Lake Indian Band, Neskonlith Indian Band, Interior Health |
Response phase details
The responsible person or spiller is legally required to clean-up or manage the clean-up of a spill.
In incidents where the responsible person is unknown, unable or unwilling to manage the cleanup, the Ministry of Environment and Climate Change Strategy (ENV) may assume the role.
The updates below reflect the ministry’s oversight of the spillers’ actions. Details describe the spill response phase only and not the complete lifecycle of the spill. Visit the 'More information' page for other reports.
Updates are in reverse chronological order with the most recent at the top.
Industry-specific language may be explained in the Glossary of Terms (PDF, 106KB).
Most recent updates
November 9, 2023
The truck, trailer and excavator were successfully removed from the lake. A boom remains in place within the lake to contain spill contents and the boom will be retrieved on November 10. ENV remains the lead organization for this response as efforts to identify a Responsible Party continue.
Any threat of pollution to the lake has been mitigated as ENV continues to assess environmental impacts.
No further updates are expected from this incident.
November 7, 2023
A pick-up truck and trailer that was hauling an excavator entered into Pillar Lake from the Falkland-Chase Forest Service Road. The truck entered the lake approximately 15 km north of Falkland, BC with an unknown amount of fluids released into the lake.
An Environmental Emergency Response Officer (EERO) arrived shortly thereafter to being assessing the scene. Reports of a visible sheen on the water adjacent to Pillar Lake Resort was observed.
Attempts to contact the truck and trailer operator (Responsible Person) by the Ministry of Environment and Climate Change Strategy (ENV) has been unsuccessful to date. ENV has thereby taken over response actions and retained a spill contractor to remove the vehicle, trailer, excavator, along with associated contents while also addressing impacts to the environment.
Local First Nations in the area, including Adams Lake Indian Band, Neskonlith Indian Band and Okanagan Nation Alliance have been notified of the spill. Additional EERO's made it to site on November 8 to oversee spill response operations, including vehicle recovery.
Further updates will be provided as information becomes available.