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CBC
22 minutes ago
- CBC
B.C. sees thousands of wildfire evacuees every year. But are people moving permanently?
Social Sharing Michelle Feist never anticipated she would leave Lytton when she moved to the small Interior B.C. village in 2016. For her, it was a fresh start after her husband passed away. But after a wildfire tore through and destroyed most of the community in 2021, she couldn't bear to return. "The consequences are lasting. I will never be as I was before the fire," said Feist. Some residents of Lytton are rebuilding four years after the fire. Others, like Feist, have chosen to relocate. Feist initially moved to Williams Lake in the aftermath of the blaze. But she soon realized she was not free from the fire and smoke — and the anxiety— that were present every summer she lived there. "It changes you." Feist, a lover of the outdoors, started to dread the upcoming spring and summer seasons. In February of this year she made the difficult choice to move to a condo in Parksville, on Vancouver Island. "I just looked at the situation and thought, I don't know if I could do this indefinitely," she said. Although she misses living in a house, being surrounded by nature and having a garden, she does not regret her decision. "It's nice to be able to see and breathe, and I'm not dreading the season," Feist said. "Some disaster could hit it but it's probably not going to be a wildfire ... I feel safer." 'Difficult decisions' Feist isn't alone. She says many of her former Lytton neighbours have made the same decision, some even moving out of province. It's a dilemma that those in wildfire-prone communities are increasingly faced with, says Sarah Kamal, who researches disaster displacement at the University of British Columbia (UBC). "The vulnerability is very real and these communities are having to make some difficult decisions," she said. Kamal says the question for many communities that are often threatened by fire, is whether they have the resources to make infrastructure investments as well as respond to disasters. "Often these disasters cascade one after the other," said Kamal. "You really have to know you have ... those resources to respond in time." Firefighting in small and remote communities can be particularly challenging and expensive. WATCH | How B.C. First Nations use controlled burns to protect their communities: What Canada can learn from how B.C. First Nations prevent wildfire disasters 1 year ago First Nations in B.C. are in a race to protect themselves from wildfires, bringing back a tradition that had been banned for decades. CBC's Brady Strachan was invited to the front line of a prescribed or cultural burn to learn more about how it's done and why experts say other communities across Canada need to follow their example. Kamal says due to geography and limited resources, among other factors, it's not always possible to future-proof a community. She says that reality is difficult, especially for Indigenous communities that have deep connections to the land. "If you do leave, you're leaving many, many things, traditional ways of life, community, and so on. There's heartache in so many cases." Displacement unknown Over 7,000 residents were temporarily evacuated from their homes in the province during the 2024 wildfire season, according to the B.C. Wildfire Service. That number was in the tens of thousands during the 2023 fire season. And wildfires in the province are only expected to get worse. But the number of people who move away long term due to wildfire risk is difficult to track, says Barbara Roden, mayor of Ashcroft and chair of the Thompson-Nicola Regional District — an area that has seen numerous evacuation orders and alerts in the past decade. "People have lots of different reasons for moving into and out of an area." In recent years, though, she's had more people who are moving to Ashcroft ask her about the wildfire risk and what they need to know. "That is something that I definitely have seen over the last few years that was [previously] not a factor," said Roden. "It's something that has to be in the back of our minds." Evacuation alert vs. evacuation order: What you need to know 2 years ago Wildfire season has begun in B.C., and terms like 'evacuation alert' and 'evacuation order' are constantly in the news. CBC's Maurice Katz tells us the difference between the two, and more. In 2021, the B.C. Wildfire Service conducted a strategic threat analysis to map out areas of high wildfire risk in the province, and provide local governments, residents and other stakeholders with a tool to assess what steps need to be taken. The threat overview showed much of the province is either under extreme or high threat of wildfire. Roden says it is up to municipalities to proactively create evacuation plans, fire smart their communities, encourage people to fire smart their own properties, and keep residents informed. "They're there to be that steady voice of reassurance at a very scary time." Farrukh Chishtie, a scientist with the climate migration research group at UBC, says not enough research has been done to look at those who have relocated permanently due to wildfires. He says climate migration is happening in B.C., but the extent is unknown. "Where are they going to, and what type of struggles are they facing? We have no data," he said. The B.C. Wildfire Service confirmed to CBC News the province does not track wildfire migration. Feist says she feels lucky to have been able to move, as some do not have that option. And she recognizes many people choose to stay in their community. Although she is happy where she is, she says hardly a day goes by where she doesn't think about fire.
CBC
3 hours ago
- CBC
Sault Ste. Marie, Ont., program works to offer meals to students during the summer
School's out for summer but some groups in northeastern Ontario are still working to make sure children have access to healthy food. During the school year, programs are offered through the province's student nutrition program to provide students with healthy meals and snacks. But there can be a gap in the summer when classes are not in session. In Sault Ste. Marie, Harvest Algoma came up with the idea to try and get food out in the community during the summer months. "So essentially it's to fill a gap," Lauren Moran, the community enterprise manager said. "A lot of these kids being from a lower income situation would be relying on nutrition programs that they would have access to at the school during the year." Moran said the need has grown in recent years. In 2023, she said more than 7,000 lunches were prepared and handed out. This year, they're planning to give out almost 10,000 meals. "This year is essentially the largest number that we've served so far," she said. "It's unfortunate that we know it's a need, it's a growing need. We've seen food bank usage rising. So we know that food insecurity is essentially a very real challenge that a lot of families in our community are facing." To help feed that need, volunteers pack lunches containing a variety of food, including a sandwich, produce, milk or a juice box and a cookie. The meals are dropped off at programs throughout the city, including the Kids Being Kids program, which is like a summer camp program offered to different income levels in the community. "Then there's a couple of spots where we drop them off through town and those are like first come, first serve drop in basis," Moran said. "We have a public library location. So those get dropped off at the library and anybody who needs a lunch for their child can drop in and grab one of those." Moran recalls one summer where she dropped off a box of lunches at the library. "I went around, kind of told a couple of people about it and just sat back and watched the folks take advantage of that," she said. "I mean, as a mother myself, I know that if I were in that kind of financial situation and there was even a small bit of relief that would be a welcome thing." Helping to offer programs Sault Ste. Marie is one of the few areas in the region offering such a program. In North Bay, the student nutrition program is offered by Community Living North Bay. During the school year, 100 schools take part with 24,000 students enrolled. During the summer, 11 schools receive funding to help feed about 300 students. Marianne Raymond is the director of communications and marketing for Community Living North Bay. "We offer the funding directly to the schools and we have community development co-ordinators that support each school and their specific program," she said. "The scope of our program really is to support those schools to make sure that those programs are running effectively." In Sudbury, Better Beginnings, Better Futures operates the student nutrition program during the school year. The organization received some one-time funding during the pandemic to offer summer meals, but hasn't done so in recent years.
CBC
3 hours ago
- CBC
Saint John's Main Street project brings fresh change, corrects old mistakes
One of the largest Saint John construction projects of the season is nearing completion. The Main Street project brings the city its first protected bike lane and corrects decades-old mistakes, city staff say.
