A debris torrent on March 25, 1999 blocked the Lardeau highway and cut the power lines servicing the north end of Kootenay. It ran a distance of 415 metres to Highway 31 and dropped an elevation of 235 metres. It continued across the highway and down into Kootenay Lake several hundred meters below. This debris torrent originated on a slope break 50 metres directly below a culvert on a forest access road. This road ran along the bottom of what appeared to be a five year old clearcut. It intercepted all the drainage water from the north half of this clearcut as well as for a considerable distance up the road beyond the clearcut and concentrated it into this culvert. This concentration of water saturated the slope below the culvert resulting in this destructive debris torrent. This debris torrent occurred within DL 896, of the Timber Agreement Lands held by Slocan Forest Products. The agreement is under the jurisdiction of MELP, and grants Slocan Forest Products the right to access the Timber Agreement Lands for the purpose of timber extraction and does not fall under the jurisdiction of the Forest Practices Code. The Ministry of Forests is investigating this debris torrent.