Province Responds to Civil Action
- kc dyer
- Jul 21
- 3 min read
Calls deadly landslide "Act of God"; denies responsibility
BC provincial lawyers have responded to the civil claim filed by families affected by last year's deadly landslide.
A massive debris torrent cascaded down Battani Creek above Brunswick Beach on December 14, 2024, killing Barbara and David Enns when their home was swept down the mountainside. Debris shot out across Highway 99, blocking it entirely. The landslide resulted in the evacuation of a number of homes, and triggered a local state of emergency which remains in place to this day.
On April 16, a civil action was filed in BC Supreme Court on behalf of Michael Enns and Jody Dyer, the children of Barbara and David Enns, as well as Fiona and Raymond Fourie, Michelle Medland and Sean Barry, the couples who own and reside in the two remaining houses above the bridge on Crystal Falls Road.
The province of British Columbia, the Village of Lions Bay and Steven Vestergaard were named as defendants in the lawsuit. Vestergaard is the owner of the property located above the landslide area on which a water reservoir had been built.
The civil action alleges that the reservoir constructed on Crown land above Lions Bay was done so illegally. It alleges that both Steve Vestergaard, who built the reservoir and associated works, and the Province failed to adequately comply with directives laid out in a 2014 geotechnical report, ensuring that the known risks associated with the constructed works were resolved or mitigated.
Vestergaard responded to the civil action on June 5, stating that any construction he undertook was legal and authorized, and that he was not responsible for the debris flow or the damage resulting from it.
That same day, Vestergaard filed a counter-suit against the Enns estate, Medland, Barry and the Fouries. He is seeking damages for economic loss, reputational harm, defamation and personal injury. In a response filed on June 27, the families denied all of Vestergaard's allegations, calling them "frivolous and vexatious."
On May 23, the Village responded to the action, declaring that neither the bridge nor Glendale Road are considered public highway, and that the Village has no obligation to repair or maintain the bridge or road.
The province filed their response to the civil action on July 16. In the document filed with the Supreme Court of British Columbia, lawyers for the province stated that the debris flow "was caused by natural events," and should be considered "an 'act of God' of a type endemic to the area where it occurred."
Referencing the work done by Vestergaard on his property, which is outside the municipal boundary of Lions Bay, the province's defence states that "if the Illegal Works caused or contributed to the Debris Flow, the Province was not responsible for those works and took reasonable and appropriate steps as regulator and landowner."
No information has been made publicly available about the cause of the debris torrent and landslide. While there have been reports that the province is financing a geotechnical evaluation of the area post-slide, no confirmation has been received from Village staff.
Squamish RCMP said the investigation into the deaths of the Enns is continuing.
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This is such a sad situation for the families still living over there. They have been traumatized not only by the tragic loss of their friends and neighbors, but the seeming lack of action since. The local state of emergency still stands, but I sense that they are feeling abandoned, and because of ongoing involvement with legal matters, are unable to speak to the situation themselves.