30 residents evacuated from Esquimalt apartments due to 'sinkhole'

Thirty Esquimalt residents had to evacuate their homes early Tuesday morning after a shoring wall at a residential construction site next door collapsed, causing what tenants described as a large "sinkhole" in the parking lot of the apartment building.

Orlena Lucas, who has lived at 656 Admirals Rd. for 10 years, heard the cave-in before she saw it.

"Between six and seven this morning, I heard a big crash," she said.

The earth below her apartment building's parking lot collapsed, taking trash bins and a car with it.

Another tenant noticed the sinkhole shortly after and began knocking on doors to tell her neighbours to evacuate.

Another apartment building, 665 Constance Ave. — located behind the Admirals Road apartment — was also evacuated. Residents of that building were allowed to return Tuesday afternoon.

A contractor from Eagle Crest Construction, the Calgary-based company behind the construction in the neighbouring lot, called emergency services to alert them to the cave-in, according to Esquimalt Assistant Fire Chief Neal Widdifield.

Fire department officials helped people evacuate to the Archie Browning Sports Centre and aided engineers in conducting an assessment of the area.

"There's a plan going to be developed to allow people back into the building and to make the site safe," said Widdifield on Tuesday morning.

Weeks of concern

Lucas said she and other residents noticed large cracks emerging on the building and parking lot over the past two weeks. Several residents also said they felt the building shaking, even when construction was not taking place.

Although several residents said they complained about the issues, they feel their warnings went unheard.

"We've been saying, 'Hey, look at these cracks, our building keeps shaking, these cracks are getting bigger,'" said Lucas. "Nothing happened until the sinkhole happened this morning."

CBC News attempted to reach out to the building's owner, whose son declined to give an on-the-record interview. 

When she evacuated, Lucas said she only had time to grab the essentials: her purse, her phone, a bottle of water, and her two cats, Blueboy and Joey.

Neighbours grabbed what they could carry — pets, valuables, and backpacks of essentials — and took a bus to the Archie Browning Sports Centre. At the centre, they were met by Esquimalt's Emergency Social Services, who are offering support for displaced residents.

One woman said she returned to the building twice after it was evacuated to rescue two pet fish, which she said belonged to her grandchildren.

Site still under assessment

On Tuesday afternoon, a spokesperson for the Township of Esquimalt said that while people were allowed to return to 665 Constance, the other building still needs to be assessed by structural engineers.

Widdifield said that the Emergency Social Services team are working to provide shelter to any residents unable to return home.

A spokesperson for WorksafeBC said that there were no injuries in the collapse. According to the township, staff from WorksafeBC will need to survey the area to determine when it will be safe to resume construction, for which a timeline has not been determined.

Lucas said she hopes it won't be long before she is allowed home — particularly as she left her cat's food behind. She's also worried about potentially having to find a new, pet-friendly place to live.

"I'm just trying to keep a positive frame of mind, cause everyone around me is like, 'What are we going to do?'" she said.

"I don't know, I'll take it as it comes."