Mount Polley tailings breach debris worries Quesnel Lake residents

When the earth barrier of the massive Mount Polley mine tailings pond gave way Monday, the flood of water and sludge took out the banks of Hazeltine Creek and a huge swath of forest in the central B.C. region where the mine is located.

Trees snapped off, washed down and piled up in Polley Lake and Quesnel Lake in tangled clumps — some as high as a house.

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CBC camera operator Mark Gryski went for a boat tour with longtime resident Lionel Guiltner, who is concerned the log debris piles will shift, wash downstream and wipe out his property and the homes of his neighbours.

Click on the video icon above to hear from Guiltner describe the damage from his boat on Quesnel Lake Tuesday.

On mobile? Click here for a photogallery of the cleanup beginning on Quesnel Lake