Clearwater, B.C., launches its own wildland firefighting team amid ongoing drought

Courtney Dickson · CBC News

· Posted: Mar 30, 2025 9:00 AM EDT | Last Updated: 10 minutes ago

A tiny assemblage successful B.C.'s North Thompson portion is launching its ain peculiar firefighting squad to suppress wildfires that popular implicit the summer, arsenic the hazard of wildfire successful specified a heavy forested country remains a cardinal interest for residents. 

The determination comes aft the B.C. Wildfire Service pulled archetypal onslaught crews from the country respective years ago, according to Clearwater Mayor Merlin Blackwell. Now, the B.C. Wildfire Service said, the crews are based successful Kamloops, astir 126 kilometres southbound of the community. 

This is each good and good, but if a wildfire sparks, a much contiguous effect whitethorn beryllium necessary. 

"Clearwater, if you haven't been here, has astir apt much trees than immoderate municipality for per acre," Blackwell told CBC's Daybreak Kamloops big Shelley Joyce.

Meanwhile, the snowpack crossed the state is good beneath normal, and forecasters are disquieted an ongoing drought plaguing the state volition proceed done the summer.

As British Columbians person travel to learn, tons of substance — trees — and adust conditions tin spell catastrophe erstwhile it comes to wildfires. 

The team, called the Fire Department Initial Attack unit (FDIA), volition beryllium made up of six members, according to the district's manager of firm services, Alsid Prime, and they volition beryllium utilized depending connected risk, availability and whether B.C. Wildfire crews are involved. 

The territory expects to walk up to $294,532 connected instrumentality and training, paid retired from the Wells Gray Community Forest Reserve Fund.

These are unpaid positions, however, Blackwell said the squad volition beryllium paid erstwhile grooming oregon moving connected a fire.

The territory is besides adding different idiosyncratic to its two-person FireSmart mitigation crew, which volition service arsenic the wildfire effect squad during daytime hours successful the summer. Those 3 people, on with a FireSmart Coordinator, volition signifier a four-person squad that tin respond to wildfires if different FDIA volunteers are busy. That way, there's ever idiosyncratic disposable to respond to fires, Prime said. 

The recruitment process hasn't formally launched — but assemblage members are already showing involvement successful joining the squad and making definite their homes are protected against aboriginal fires, Prime said.

They expect to person the squad up and moving by May. 

While Blackwell is blessed astir the improvement of the team, helium said determination are ne'er capable resources erstwhile it comes to warring wildfires successful immoderate B.C. community.

"I inactive privation my archetypal onslaught crews that were formerly here, based successful Clearwater, with B.C. Wildfire Service back," helium said.

Blackwell met with Forest Minister Ravi Parmar precocious to speech astir however teams successful Kamloops volition enactment the needs successful Clearwater. 

He said helium wants the FDIA squad to beryllium thing of a concern with the province. 

In a connection provided to CBC News, Parmar said partnerships with section authorities are "important" erstwhile it comes to wildfire response. 

"The B.C. Wildfire Service squad perpetually monitors conditions, and erstwhile the wildfire hazard is precocious — for immoderate assemblage successful B.C. — the B.C. Wildfire Service volition basal much crews, deploy resources, and enactment with section leaders to guarantee that radical are kept safe."

Blackwell said helium does spot a aboriginal wherever B.C. Wildfire crews instrumentality to Clearwater connected a much imperishable basis, but that won't impact the enactment the section FDIA squad is doing. 

"I deliberation arsenic clip goes on, everybody is acknowledging that the hazard is increasing," helium said. 

"But I deliberation each assemblage similar america needs to look at, what is your hazard internally and bash you person the close instrumentality for this? If we were successful Kamloops and we had six-storey flat buildings, we'd beryllium buying a batch of ladder trucks. We don't person that risk. We person this hazard and we're dealing with this hazard close now."