‘It’s really sad’: B.C. community still reeling 1 year after fatal landslide in Lions Bay

Barbara and David Enns were long-time residents and well-known in the tight-knit community of Lions Bay, where their tragic deaths are still deeply felt one year later.

On Dec. 14, 2024, a landslide sent mud, rocks and trees crashing through their house while they were inside.

Tanya Cosgrave, a close family friend to the Enns, said there is not a day that goes by that she doesn’t think about and miss them.

“They loved to laugh, Barb especially. They lived life on their own terms,” she said.

The fatal landslide, just north of Vancouver, devastated the community and there are still many unanswered questions about what happened.

Mayor Ken Berry said the Enns were a pillar in the community of about 1,500 people.

“I don't think we were prepared for what happened a year ago and the loss of a family,” he said. “The family was part of the trailblazers and the generation that really built this village.”

Neighbour Betty Newall was home when the slide happened and called for help.

“We could feel it from the floor of the house, the vibration, literally in our bones, the sound and the vibration was really scary,” she said. “It’s really sad.”

Newall, like many others in the community, still does not know what caused the slide.

“There is a lot of speculation on what was happening above,” she said.

Investigations, lawsuits

An RCMP investigation into the fatal landslide is ongoing and active.

The Enns’ children and two nearby neighbours launched a lawsuit back in April against the Province of B.C., the Village of Lions Bay and neighbour Steven Vestergaard.

The lawsuit claims Vestergaard illegally built roads and a reservoir above the Enns' home on crown land, and that the construction led to the slide.

“The debris flow was caused, or alternatively contributed to, by the illegal works on crown land,” states the notice of civil claim.

Vestergaard filed a response in June claiming the work was not "illegal" and that he obtained "every required government permit and approval."

“I deny that there is any reasonable or credible evidence that I caused, contributed to, or otherwise had responsibility for the debris flow,” states the response.

The province responded to the civil claim in July, claiming the debris flow was caused by natural events.

“It was an 'act of God' of a type endemic to the area where it occurred … the Province was not responsible for those works and took reasonable and appropriate steps as regulator and landowner,” states the response.

None of the claims have been proven in court.

The Ministry of Water, Land and Resources declined to comment on the slide when contacted nearing the anniversary, stating that the matter is before the courts.

A study from the area is being conducted by BCG Engineering and will have recommendations for the province and the village.

Civil litigation lawyer Arden Beddoes, who is not involved in the proceedings, said it will be a complicated case.

“One of the interesting things that arises in this case is whether or not the plaintiff can hold the defendants, including the province, what we say strictly liable for what's happened here,” Beddoes said.

History of slides in Lions Bay

Back in February 1983, a mudslide tore through the Village of Lions Bay.

Tom Wade, 18, and older brother David, 19, both died instantly when a trailer they were sleeping in next to the creek was flattened and buried.

Afterwards, the Ministry of Highways agreed to build catchment basins at four creeks, including Alberta Creek, to better protect the community from future slides or weather-related events.

Simon Fraser University earth sciences professor Brent Ward, an expert in landslides who visited the site after the 2024 incident, believes it started from a spot where trees had been cleared.

“It initiated right where the clearing was, where the water intake valve was being placed, and where there'd been some work done in the creek,” he said.

“The wind caused trees to rock and that caused a little failure, and that was enough to start a chain reaction where that small slide translated into a very large debris flow.”

Their doors were always open

Cosgrave had known Barbara and David since she was born.

“We will never forget all of our family ski vacations, some of the best times of our lives,” Cosgrave said.

David loved music, dancing and making homemade bread.

Barbara was a tremendous cook who was always welcoming and enjoyed helping others.

“We will forever miss having meals and conversation at their dinner table. Their doors were always open, even if you showed up unannounced,” Cosgrave said.

The Enns have a large extended family that "misses them terribly," she said.

“There’s a piece of Barbara and David that will carry on in all of them and all of those that were lucky enough to know them and call them friends and family.”