Okanagan firefighters helping battle wildfires in northeastern B.C. – Okanagan | 24CA News
A longtime Kelowna firefighter spent Wednesday coaching a brand new batch of recruits.
Come Saturday, although, his focus — and site — will shift dramatically.
Larry Keating says he and two different colleagues shall be travelling to fire-ravaged areas close to Fort St. John to alleviate three different Kelowna firefighters.
An evacuation alert issued for Fort St. John was rescinded on Wednesday morning, and the wildfire that triggered it’s nonetheless deemed to be burning uncontrolled.
There are actually 4 fires within the space making up the North Peace Fire Complex.
“We’ll be doing some structure protection, as well as basically patrols to make sure that the fire hasn’t encroached into the city limits and or any of the properties or outlying areas,” Keating instructed Global News. “So that’s that’s our task.”
Along with sending three members north, the hearth division can also be dispatching one among its vehicles.
“We look to our crews to see if we have crews who are available to go and are willing to go up for that period of time. They have to deploy for 14 days,” mentioned Dwight Seymour, deputy hearth chief with the Kelowna Fire Department (KFD).
In addition to Kelowna firefighters, three members from Lake Country and Peachland’s hearth chief are additionally lending serving to fingers.
Lake Country can also be sending up a command truck and a water tender, whereas Peachland can also be lending a command truck.
Seymour mentioned native assist is a part of an interagency settlement with B.C.’s Wildfire Service.
“We’re asked, as a membership, whether we have the ability or the time to go up. And, of course, we try and give back to the community,” Seymour mentioned.
“So yeah, we’re willing to go up there and try and make this situation a little better for those folks out there.”
He added that willingness to assist is normally very excessive.
“That’s why we get into this job; to help the public and help others. This is just another example of that,” Seymour mentioned.
“So when we ask our guys, we usually get more who are willing to go than what we actually are allowed to send, because they all want to help and help another community.”
Kelowna firefighters know all too effectively how important assist is throughout hearth season.
Seymour pointed to the 2003 Okanagan Mountain hearth that devastated Kelowna, and the assistance that town obtained.
“We had apparatus and firefighters from across B.C. coming to help us,” Seymour mentioned.
“We want to make sure that we’re paying it forward and that we’re doing the same thing because tomorrow could be when we’re asking for resources to come here.”
It’s a sentiment echoed by Keating, who leaves for the firefront on Saturday.
“It’s the right thing to do,” he mentioned.
© 2023 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.
