[EN IMAGES] Saguenay: a house washed away during a major landslide

A major landslide swept away a residence that fell at the bottom of a cliff last night in the borough of La Baie, in Saguenay.

According to the first indications, the swept away house would have somersaulted over a low wall. Fortunately, nobody was hurt. Quickly, the firefighters were able to confirm that the worst had been avoided.

The natural disaster occurred shortly before 8 p.m. The call to 9-1-1 was made at 7:53 p.m.

The house once located on 8th Avenue is a total loss after being unhooked from the embankment. The images are spectacular.

As a preventive measure, it had been evacuated for several weeks, like two other houses, because cracks had appeared.

This decision may have saved lives.

The other two are still in place, while those below were not affected by the landslide either.

“Big disaster”

” I do not believe it. I always stayed upstairs. The house no longer exists. Mother Nature is unleashed. Thank you to the authorities for putting concrete blocks. It’s a big disaster,” explained Sébastien Tremblay, a resident of the area.

Buildings on avenue du Parc, as well as others on rue de la Terrasse-du-Golf, are now covered by evacuation notices.

“For the moment, we have 21 residences evacuated around the site. There is no chance to take. Concrete blocks installed at Easter did the job of holding back the flow, ”explained Dominic Arseneau, spokesperson for the police of the City of Saguenay.

18 houses at the top

Eighteen houses are located at the top of the threatening embankment. These have not suffered any damage yet.

At press time, emergency services were still on scene along with the Red Cross.