The District of Clearwater (DOC) is being proactive ahead of wildfire season in the North Thompson Valley.
Recently the rural community was identified as the most at-risk small community to growing wildfire threat in Canada by 2050 through advanced wildfire risk modeling.
In a news release on Thursday, March 20, the District of Clearwater announced the approval and implementation of the Clearwater Fire Department Initial Attack (FDIA) Crew and the expansion of the FireSmart Fuel Mitigation Crew. These initiatives were approved by Clearwater Council on March 18, 2025.
Mayor Blackwell has extensive knowledge of the forests in and around Clearwater due to his experience prior to being elected having overseen management of Wells Gray Park services for many years.
“I have long said that Clearwater is not an interface town; we live within a forest instead of being surrounded by one. There are many Clearwater homeowners who have more trees on their lots than there are trees in entire neighbourhoods in other cities or towns,” Blackwell said, adding, “With no immediate return of BC Wildfire Service Initial Attack crews, despite our extensive lobbying efforts by District of Clearwater council we had to act and respond accordingly with a plan of our own.”
"The Initial Attack Crew will significantly reduce response times by providing an immediate, specialized wildfire suppression capability directly within our community. Equipped with a tactical water tender, and a wildland bush truck specifically outfitted for off-road wildfire response, this crew will be ready to deploy swiftly to wildfire incidents, ensuring rapid containment and suppression before fires escalate," said Clearwater fire chief Mike Smith.
The FDIA Crew will operate across multiple strategic response areas as outlined under the Provincial Interagency Agreement.
The district fire crews will operate as immediate response teams to wildfire ignitions within municipal boundaries while prioritizing early containment up to 10 kilometres beyond district boundaries working in conjunction with BC Wildfire Service (BCWS) for incidents near Clearwater that threaten the municipality. Beyond the extended 10-kilometre limit will be under the direction of BCWS.
Crews will be receiving extensive wildfire training to be wildfire ready, concentrating on enhancing their physical fitness as well, said Smith.
A significant addition to firefighting mitigation in the district will also be the expansion of the FireSmart Mitigation crew and program by increasing its capacity from two part-time positions to three full-time seasonal positions. This crew will be focused on fuel reduction and mitigation projects around critical municipal infrastructure, district roadways, evacuation routes and targeted private properties.
The FireSmart crew will be equipped with a new woodchipper, enabling debris removal during the fire season when open burning is restricted.
"Expanding our mitigation crew will substantially increase our ability to proactively reduce wildfire hazards. With more hours and better equipment, we can complete extensive fuel reduction projects throughout the community, creating safer, more defensible spaces that protect homes, roads, and critical infrastructure,” said FireSmart coordinator, Chance Breckenridge.
Funding for the FDIA crew and expanded FireSmart Mitigation Crew will primarily come from existing reserves, and provincial grant programs.
The FDIA crew's initial setup will be funded by an allocation from the Wells Gray Community Forest Reserve, previously established through community forest donations.
The expanded FireSmart Mitigation Crew will be fully funded through 2027 by a combination of the district's Local Government Climate Action Program (LGCAP) reserves and annual FireSmart Grant contributions.
Blackwell said one response is to “reduce wildfire risk by creating an expanded FireSmart program” that includes a DOC wildfire fuel management crew.
“Staff came up with a solid proposal for this that is funded through grant dollars for this crew," he said. “The second part is to understand that living within a forest means that you need to ramp up your fire department to tackle forest fires within your town boundaries. Staff came up with various configurations for our own version of an Initial Attack Crew, and council worked with them to land on a version we thought the citizens would find value in.”
The mayor feels this approach is no different than adding new fire equipment in the city, he added.
“I find it no different to adding new fire equipment in the city if you were to have taller apartment buildings being built; to increase public safety, you must adapt to changing conditions. In this case, those changing conditions relate to hotter, dryer, more extreme wildfire seasons.”
The district will be launching a recruitment program to coincide with this announcement looking to hire up to six local residents to join the new FDIA crew on the specialized wildfire suppression team. The district will be considering those applicants with experience in firefighting or forestry backgrounds but also encourage those willing to learn who are physically fit and having a desire to protect the community.
Further details about qualifications, expectations, and compensation will be announced in the near future.
