By Keith McNeill
Blue River is no longer part of the Kamloops Fire Centre. It is instead part of Prince George Fire Centre.
The boundary was redrawn in March of this year as part of the merger of the Clearwater Fire Zone into the Kamloops Fire Zone.
Prince George Fire Centre assumed operational administration of the upper North Thompson Valley, including the Blue River area, at that time.
According to Rachel Witt, a BC Wildfire Service information officer, the boundary change was done to ensure that BCWS can respond as efficiently as possible, with the best resources available, to wildfires.
Blue River is now within the Robson Valley Zone of the Prince George Fire Centre. The zone is based out of Valemount.
According to Witt, historically Robson Valley Zone crews have been able to initially access fires in the Blue River region efficiently.
The merger of the Clearwater Fire Zone into the Kamloops Fire Zone and the threatened closure of the BC Wildfire Service office in Clearwater has been an object of discussion between District of Clearwater and the forests ministry.
The spokesperson pointed out that the Kamloops Zone allocates a minimum two seasonal initial attack crews, two seasonal support staff and two permanent (year round) wildfire staff at the Clearwater base, regardless of whether it’s a quieter fire season.
She explained that, in winter, a much smaller workforce of permanent staff operate at the zones and conduct reviews, fuel management projects, forward planning and stakeholder engagement.
During the summer, BC Wildfire Service employs over 1,000 firefighters located strategically throughout the province.
Typically, their work term aligns with the fire season which generally runs April through September.
However, crews will be recalled for duty earlier in the season or extended later based on the weather and fire season outlook.
When asked what equipment had been taken from Clearwater, she said that each base, including Clearwater, is stocked with the standard firefighting equipment (hoses, pumps, saws, etc.) to meet the requirements to prepare properly for the upcoming fire season.
Similarly, BCWS pre-assigns crews, not just equipment, based on the fire hazard and preparedness requirements. The preparedness levels are reviewed bi-weekly throughout the fire season and adjustments are made to ensure a timely wildfire response.
“All BCWS resources are considered provincial and we will continue to ensure that the closest and best resource will respond to any fire,” Witt said.
The former Clearwater Fire Zone covered the same area as the former Clearwater Forest District, which included Blue River and the North Thompson drainage to the height of land near Valemount.
According to Times files, BC Forest Service downgraded its field office in Blue River to a summer station in 1984, transferring the three staff there to Clearwater. The field office had been in operation for 30 years before that.
For the past several years, Blue River has only had a summer station if there has been a fire in the area.
It is about 380 km from Prince George to Blue River while Kamloops is 230 km from Blue River, a difference of 150 km.