Members of the Knutsford Initial Response Team are seen fighting the Ross Moore Lake wildfire in 2023.

Image Credit: SUBMITTED/ Kamloops Community Response Society/ Nat Anfield

A rural community south of Kamloops is pioneering an exciting wildfire fighting model that could be established in other rural communities in the province.

The unincorporated neighbourhood of Knutsford is made up of farmers and ranchers, some of whom formed an emergency response team to protect their homes and properties from wildfires.

“Everyone I talked to is very positive about us, we put a lot of time and effort in this,” said Knutsford Initial Response Team chief, Terry Jessup. “We’re organized and good at following directions.”

Last summer when the Ross Moore Lake wildfire burned through the area, the response team worked effectively with the BC Wildfire Service and regional district to help battle it, becoming a pioneering example for other rural communities in the province.

“Through the work of one of our community members we were taken on by the wildfire service as statutory hires, so we worked with them and did what we were told to do,” Jessup said. “We’re now identified as one of the communities recognized by the wildfire service and district as good examples of the way things can be done.”

That same summer, the Bush Creek East wildfire was burning through communities in the Shuswap where many residents defied the orders of the BC Wildfire Service to evacuate, creating friction with authorities.

Several locals in that area stayed behind to protect their homes and properties, something the regional district and other authorities did approve of. There were claims locals were stealing firefighting equipment and throwing garbage at firefighters, while residents complained a heavy presence of RCMP officers were blocking supplies going into and out of the fire ravaged communities.

On Aug. 23, roughly 20 protestors showed up at an RCMP roadblock near Sorrento in what police said was an effort to overwhelm the blockade prompting the wildfire service to temporarily pull firefighters out of the area for safety reasons.

The management of the Bush Creek East wildfire continues to be criticized by some Shuswap residents.

Lee Creek resident Jim Cooperman took a petition calling for major changes to BC Wildfire Service to the premier’s office in November with one of the demands being to collaborate with local contractors and landowners.

This is something the wildfire service does, but those who are not already partnered with the wildfire service when an evacuation ordered is delivered are unlikely to be allowed in to work.

The Ross Moore Lake wildfire is measured at around 2,700 hectares as of July 31, 2023.

Image Credit: BC Wildfire Service

The Knutsford Initial Response Team was formed in 2021.

“In 2021 there were arson fires where someone was running around lighting grass fires so we banded together and went out to deal with those,” Jessup said. “Once the wildfire service showed up it was their show, we assisted when they needed us.”

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Another nearby fire started up that year from a lightening strike, prompting a town hall meeting where it was decided that some community members would take firefighting training courses and a more formal, organized unit began to develop.

FireSmart practises were adopted, more members were trained and equipment was gathered. A community alert system and a resource map was created.

The following year was cold and wet without fire activity in the area, but when Ross Moore Lake wildfire lit up in 2023, the initial response team was prepared and worked cooperatively with the wildfire service and the Thompson Nicola Regional District. 

“Through the work of one of our community members we were taken on by the wildfire service as statutory hires, so we worked with them and did what we were told to do. Probably the golden rule is that it’s a BC Wildfire show, they’re in charge and running it, we help where we need to and do what they tell us.”

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Jessup said the response team was able to help wildfire authorities navigate the terrain.

“That’s an important part, local people with local knowledge are assets,” he said. “We may not know the ranch land itself but we know the land owners and can talk with them. The biggest thing is accessing areas without fence cutting and knowing where there is water.”

In December the response team expanded to form the Knutsford Community Response Society. Around the same time the province implemented changes to the Emergency and Disaster Management Act that would better prepare communities for emergencies and more effectively co-ordinate response efforts. It was announced a premier’s task force on emergencies would come up with recommendations before the 2024 wildfire season. 

“We knew something was going on when we heard about the task force,” Jessup said. “We stayed ahead of the curve, forming the society and being active in training, and training without funding from the government.”

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While the wildfire service did not respond to many attempts by iNFOnews.ca for comment on the conflicts with the residents of Shuswap, the wildfire service did respond to questions about community firefighting models like the Knutsford Initial Response Team.

“The BC Wildfire Service is actively working to understand existing wildfire response capacity in rural and remote areas,” said fire information officer Emelie Peacock in an email. “On our behalf, the Fraser Basin Council has collected information on this topic through four wildfire roundtables and a survey that was sent out to 89 Electoral Areas to inform our approach and identify societies and community association interested in this model.” 

The council is arranging some training to societies and associations who are interested. Societies would work under the wildfire service and have the required wildfire training and courses.

“Public and staff safety is our topmost priority as we continue to explore different cooperative community response opportunities, therefore it’s important that we take a measured approach,” she wrote. “We also need to consider our own capacity to effectively engage and supervise community response societies in addition to regular operations.”

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Community response groups taking matters into their own hands without training or experience, or guidance from the wildfire service can pose huge risks.

“The work firefighters do is inherently dangerous and there are significant safety concerns present including danger trees, smoke inhalation, unknown explosives and live power lines,” Peacock wrote.

New team members for the Knutsford Initial Response Team are being recruited and trained for the upcoming season, and Knutsford residents are encouraged to become members of the society.

Funding for more equipment for personal protection, communication devices, and backup equipment including extra pumps, hoses and tools are needed for the 2024 season, and donations can be made here.

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