Vancouver Island fire crews help battle flames in Kelowna
CTV
As flames ravage the Kelowna area, forcing thousands to flee and destroying dozens of homes and counting, fire crews from Vancouver Island are rushing to help.
As flames ravage the Kelowna area, forcing thousands to flee and destroying dozens of homes and counting, fire crews from Vancouver Island are rushing to help.
Four municipal firefighters from Saanich, as well as crews from Lake Cowichan and Comox, have headed to the Interior. The team from Saanich arrived at the fires on Friday afternoon.
Saanich’s Assistant Deputy Chief Craig Ford said with fire conditions so extremely dangerous here on Vancouver Island, it’s a juggling act with resources, but his team felt compelled to help.
“Mother nature has a way of actually making sure that we all have to support each other," Ford said from Saanich's fire hall number one on Friday.
"That could be earthquakes, it could be floods, it could be wildfire in this situation."
The devastation wrought by the terrifying flames in the Okanagan has been unlike anything ever seen on Vancouver Island. Still, after unprecedented droughts his summer, Ford says it's not off the table here.
“In my career of 20 years, this is probably the worst case we've had in terms of wildfire threat on Vancouver Island,” Ford said. “We have large tracts of land that are not immune to what's happening in the Okanagan region and elsewhere in the province.”
