Emergency Response Capacity and Preparedness

	No. 01 — Get Prepared If you’re in an area that is prone to wildfire, or you just want to be proactive, there are a number of activities you can complete to prevent or prepare for a wildfire.
	No. 02 — Stay Safe You can stay safe during a wildfire by knowing your trusted sources of information, understanding evacuation stages, and looking out for your health and safety.
	No. 03 — Recover Returning home after a wildfire can be overwhelming, but if you use caution and take things one-step at a time, it is possible to recover and return your home to normal.
Image from Canva under a Free Media License

The Meso: Municipal & Community Response to the Lytton Wildfire

In the case of the Lytton fire, residents were given only a minute’s notice to evacuate the village, offering them limited time to grab their belongings and leave town before the fire engulfed their homes. Community members departed in all directions, fleeing from their homes to seek shelter. Those heading north to the town of Kamloops experienced more than one evacuation, as Kamloops “was under threat of intense lightning storms, which would set the city on fire that same evening.”^[7]

In some places, people were met with food, housing and spiritual healing by outside community members supporting the wildfire evacuees. Members of the Siska First Nation in Siska, located 10 kilometres south of the village of Lytton served as a place of welcome. Food, water and basic materials were dropped off for the firefighters.^[8] One community member, Tyrell Kenworthy, highlightighted the importance of communication when it comes to responding to these wildfires for her community and province stating that “they need that Indigenous community drive work ethic that we have because we know so many people and we know how to communicate.”^[9] Kenworthy who is an elected Councillor and emergency response manager for Shxwhá:y Village, shed light on how community must prioritize communication during emergencies: “as First Nations People, we know the importance of their wellbeing and with a lot of people being traumatized from having to leave their homes, we wanted to be here to support all of the families in any way that we can […]we want to take care of their spirit, take care of their wellbeing — try to heal them a little bit […] I know that it’s a long road to healing, but we’re here to uplift them in any way that we can” Kenworthy said.^[10]

The Macro: Provincial Response to Wildfire Events

At the overarching policy and governmental level, how disastrous events such as wildfires are managed is critical as it can make a substantial difference in whether individuals have the opportunity to overcome the adversities that ensue. Intricate planning of costs and resources are both key aspects that should be accounted for when we consider the growing number of climate change-driven wildfires that we will see in the near future. To highlight this, looking at the recent wildfire season of 2021, we learn that the Government of BC’s budget costs for firefighting expenditures was raised to $881 million in September 2021 – this is after the initially allocated budget back in February 2021 of only $136 million. The additional costs that need to be allocated for rebuilding damaged infrastructure and supporting those who have lost homes is important to include, therefore a financial response that is adequately planned is one that ensures better chances of addressing the magnitude of increasing wildfires across the province.^[12]

As an illustration, when we talk about costs we need to look no further than the Lytton wildfire of 2021. The Insurance Bureau of Canada (IBC) estimated the Lytton wildfire has led to $78 million in insured damages alone. The IBC underlined that “governments at all levels must do more to prioritize investments that build our resilience and better protect our families and communities.”^[13] However, we must not forget there is no price one can place on lost life (human and wild) or the co-morbidities that may emerge in the aftermath. We are therefore urged to embrace an interdisciplinary collaborative approach across all agencies, communities and individuals in order to minimize the harms posed by wildfires.

An additionally important aspect that continues to surface in the wildfire literature and governmental responses is that of trust and communication.^[14][15] For instance, the Natural Resources of Canada highlighted that “citizen trust in management agencies is a significant factor in gaining public support for management activities such as prescribed burning or thinning forest.”^[16] Notably, when we consider the wildfire in Lytton that was presented earlier, the BC government was scrutinized for an inadequate response as a result of “gaps in protocols” as per the province’s public safety minister. According to First Nations leaders whose community was completely destroyed, the lack of communication with the Nlaka’pamux Nation Tribal Council and the Oregon Jack Creek Band lead to an insufficient evacuation response. It is observed in the media that Chief Matt Pasco, chair of the Nlaka’pamux Nation Tribal Council, mentioned how despite his request for assistance, the emergency authorities’ response was delayed, highlighting how “ it was left to those Indigenous communities to arrange everything themselves without any additional funding to save people, to give them anything they’re needing”. Chief Pasco further added, “This province does not recognize our governance systems, what we bring, and how we can protect our people.”^[17] Hence, a key takeaway from the Lytton fire and others that have preceded it is that of the ethical and moral responsibility of governments to recognize Indigenous Peoples as stewards of these lands, in order to ensure better land management and hence more positive outcomes when faced with extreme weather events.

Looking ahead, the BC Government’s 2022 Budget may offer the promise and hope necessary to overcome some of the future climate change-fuelled events that will continue to impact the health and wellbeing of all British Columbians. Efforts will be geared toward (1) strengthening educational programs and partnerships; (2) enhancing community climate resilience; (3) working toward ensuring the protection of species and ecosystems while promoting their resilience; (4) and investing the necessary funds into building an economy and infrastructure which can withstand climate change events.^[18]