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

A small community in B.C.'s North Thompson region is launching its own special firefighting team to suppress wildfires that pop over the summer, as the risk of wildfire in such a heavily forested area remains a key concern for residents. 

The move comes after the B.C. Wildfire Service pulled initial attack crews from the area several years ago, according to Clearwater Mayor Merlin Blackwell. Now, the B.C. Wildfire Service said, the crews are based in Kamloops, about 126 kilometres south of the community. 

This is all well and good, but if a wildfire sparks, a more immediate response may be necessary. 

"Clearwater, if you haven't been here, has probably more trees than any town for per acre," Blackwell told CBC's Daybreak Kamloops host Shelley Joyce.

Meanwhile, the snowpack across the province is well below normal, and forecasters are worried an ongoing drought plaguing the province will continue through the summer.

As British Columbians have come to learn, lots of fuel — trees — and dry conditions can spell disaster when it comes to wildfires. 

The team, called the Fire Department Initial Attack crew (FDIA), will be made up of six members, according to the district's director of corporate services, Alsid Prime, and they will be used depending on risk, availability and whether B.C. Wildfire crews are involved. 

The district expects to spend up to $294,532 on equipment and training, paid out from the Wells Gray Community Forest Reserve Fund.

These are volunteer positions, however, Blackwell said the team will be paid when training or working on a fire.

The district is also adding another person to its two-person FireSmart mitigation crew, which will serve as the wildfire response team during daytime hours in the summer. Those three people, along with a FireSmart Coordinator, will form a four-person team that can respond to wildfires if other FDIA volunteers are busy. That way, there's always someone available to respond to fires, Prime said. 

The recruitment process hasn't formally launched — but community members are already showing interest in joining the team and making sure their homes are protected against future fires, Prime said.

They expect to have the team up and running by May. 

While Blackwell is happy about the development of the team, he said there are never enough resources when it comes to fighting wildfires in any B.C. community.

"I still want my initial attack crews that were formerly here, based in Clearwater, with B.C. Wildfire Service back," he said.

Blackwell met with Forest Minister Ravi Parmar recently to talk about how teams in Kamloops will support the needs in Clearwater. 

He said he wants the FDIA team to be something of a partnership with the province. 

In a statement provided to CBC News, Parmar said partnerships with local government are "important" when it comes to wildfire response. 

"The B.C. Wildfire Service team constantly monitors conditions, and when the wildfire risk is high — for any community in B.C. — the B.C. Wildfire Service will base more crews, deploy resources, and work with local leaders to ensure that people are kept safe."

Blackwell said he does see a future where B.C. Wildfire crews return to Clearwater on a more permanent basis, but that won't affect the work the local FDIA team is doing. 

"I think as time goes on, everybody is acknowledging that the risk is increasing," he said. 

"But I think every community like us needs to look at, what is your risk internally and do you have the right equipment for this? If we were in Kamloops and we had six-storey apartment buildings, we'd be buying a lot of ladder trucks. We don't have that risk. We have this risk and we're dealing with this risk right now."