Wildfire resources are stretched thin as crews tackle hundreds of fires

Jul 19, 2021 | 5:15 PM

PRINCE GEORGE – Concerns are being raised on whether fire centres across the province have enough resources to fight the number of wildfires currently burning. As of Monday afternoon, there were 300 active fires burning around British Columbia, with 62 of those burning in the Prince George Fire Centre, and fire crews are feeling the pressure.

“Provincial resources are stretched – we have received to date 111 out of province personal. Last reported, they were from New Brunswick, Quebec and Alberta,” said Prince George Fire Centre Communications Specialist, Sharon Nickel.

The province has yet to declare a state of emergency, but some MLAs say that it is necessary, as more help is needed.

“They need to have additional crews and additional support coming in from other areas and a state of emergency would help with that,” said Nechako Lakes MLA, John Rustad.

There has been some relief as out-of-province help has arrived, and there is more on the way. The extra crews have been sent to fires of the greatest concern, including some in the Prince George Fire Centre.

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“Specifically, in the Prince George Centre, we received 17 personal from Alberta mid-week last week. They were deployed to our Dawson Creek, Mackenzie, Vanderhoof and Fort St. James zones. The BC Wildfire Service has a prioritization list of the fires that they will deploy resources to. The number one concern is public safety and those will be the first fires that resources get deployed to,” said Nickel

“Our firefighters are doing the best that they can but we are not able to put all the resources that are needed particularly on fires that don’t have as much threat to buildings and structures, which is really unfortunate,” continued Rustad.

Officials are still asking the public to stay vigilant and report any fire activity that they see.

“BC Wildfire Service does want to thank the public for their ongoing reporting of smoke and fire. As always if you do see it then please report it,” said Nickel.

by Taya Fast

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Wildfire resources are stretched thin as crews tackle hundreds of fires

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