Lawyer for orphaned toddler says province to blame for deadly Pemberton, B.C., mudslide

A Vancouver lawyer representing a little girl who was orphaned by the deadly Pemberton, B.C., mudslide last November said if the province had closed the road during the unprecedented atmospheric river, no one would have died.

A Vancouver lawyer representing a little girl who was orphaned by the deadly Pemberton, B.C., mudslide last November said if the province had closed the road during the unprecedented atmospheric river, no one would have lost their lives that day.

Five people died in the slide on Nov. 15, 2021 — including parents Mirsad and Anita Hadsic.

After a rare weekend away from their two-year-old daughter, the Hadsics were stuck in Vernon during the historic rain event. There was only one route open that could get them back to their little girl, who was staying with her grandmother in Metro Vancouver: Duffey Lake Road.

“They obviously would have preferred another route, but DriveBC told them that morning that the only road available to get back to the Lower Mainland was through the Duffey Lake Road artery, and that’s how they proceeded,” said Vancouver lawyer Robert Gibbens.

The Hadsics' vehicle was among dozens stuck on the road after a small mudslide blocked the route to Pemberton. They died, along with three others, when a massive wall of mud and debris came crashing down minutes later.

“The cause of the accident we are alleging was not only the fact that DriveBC told and funnelled people through this area, but also that the logging road above was improperly decommissioned,” said Gibbens.

He says that made the route more prone to mudslides, something government officials should have known when they were deciding which roads to close.