A large explosion in the Spencer interchange zone rattled dinner plates in the Florence Lake area last Friday and spit rock debris onto Savory Road.

A construction blast at about 5:15 p.m. sent shock waves across the lake, shaking homes and a sending plume of yellow smoke into the air, said Maureen Johnston, who lives on Dawn Lane.

After the blast she heard the roar of an avalanche, she said. “That was one almighty scary thing. I was shaking when it happened it was so scary,” she said.

Rock debris was launched over the tree line along Savory Road, scattering on the road and lawns. There were no reports of injuries or property damage. Blasting has been halted until at least Monday.

“Rocks were raining down,” said Elanor McKinnon, who lives on Savory. “I thought the whole house was going to come down.”

She and her daughter Annabelle were making jam when the earth trembled. They ran outside, afraid the house was going to collapse.

“We felt the blast in our core, in our bodies,” Elanor said.

“We didn’t hear any warning, then we felt the blast. It was the biggest we’ve ever felt,” Annabelle said. “We ran outside an the power lines were shaking. We heard splashes in (Florence) lake.”

Axel Brock-Miller, a 40-year resident the area, said air-horn warnings can’t be heard from Savory Road, which sits lower than the construction site. For nearby residents, the blast was sudden and unexpected, he said.

“It was stressful to experience,” Brock-Miller said. “Not until the next day was I over the stress.”

Western Grater, the blasting contractor, responded quickly and apologized profusely, he added. “I’m happy with the response so far.”

Spencer interchange construction manager Tim Stevens agreed the blast was large, although not abnormally large for the work involved.

From now on the contractor will use smaller blast, he said. As with any incident where rock is ejected outside a construction area, WorkSafeBC was called in to investigate.

“There will be full review of everything on the basis that rocks landed on the road,” Stevens said. “It’s not something we are going to tolerate.”

The incident is considered minor, although it had the potential to be much worse, he continued. “We have to take any incident seriously. If someone had been hit by rock, it would have been much more serious.”

Andy Wells, vice-president of Western Grater, said they’ve triggered explosions of similar magnitudes before, but none that have sent rocks into the street.

“Residents are concerned about the size of the blast,” he said. “We’ve met with the residents to address concerns. We’re working with the City to keep residents happy.”

Stevens said they are improving the communication process to notify residents of blasting. Carving out the base of the interchange will require at least another month of work, he said

“We aren’t blasting again until everything is resolved,” he said.

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