By Adam Donnelly

100 Mile House celebrates wildfire resiliency one year after worst fire season in memory

Jul 16, 2018 | 12:39 PM

100 MILE HOUSE — It’s been a year since the province was ravaged by one of the worst wildfire seasons in history.

The Cariboo was one of the hardest hit areas of the province, with over 900,000 hectares burned by 272 fires across the region.

On Sunday in 100 Mile House, the United Way Thompson Nicola Cariboo held a wildfire resiliency event, meant to help bring closure to the thousands of residents who were impacted by last years fire season. CFJC Took a trip up Highway 97 to cover the event and find out more about how the healing process from the 2017 fire season.

“I remember my whole riding was basically on fire,” Cariboo-Chilcotin MLA Donna Barnett recalls.

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2017 was arguably the worst wildfire season in BC’s history, and of all the areas of the province that burned, the Cariboo Regional District was the hardest hit. Barnett says many of her constituents are still suffering as a result of the crisis.

“I’ve seen a lot of them recover very well, and a lot of them don’t have homes,” Barnett says. “They’ve lost a lot of their ranches, a lot of their land. It’s been very devastating for a lot of the people.”

The fires burned over 900,000 hectares in CRD, butting over 35,000 residents (60% of the CRD population) under an evacuation order or alert.

Throughout point during the season, 48% of the population of the Cariboo Regional District were forced from their homes as a result of the fire.

“I live at Green Lake and we were evacuated twice; once at the end of July, and then again at the end of August,” Laura Dewar says. “There were a tremendous number of people who were affected throughout the whole area.”

Dewar is Community Wellness Manager with the United Way TNC in 100 Mile House and has orchestrated a Wildfire Resiliency Celebration which offers a number of activities meant to help people process the trauma of last years wildfire season.

“We’ve got what we call humour boards… the question is what the strangest or funniest thing you packed when you were evacuated. People can put a pin to show where they went when they were evacuated,” Dewar explains. “There’s [also] an opportunity for people to share their wildfire story. Here’s an opportunity for them to have it videoed, and it can be shared with others.”

The first resiliency celebration was held at 100 Mile’s Hot July Night’s car show on Sunday. Dewar says she plans to take the event to communities throughout the Cariboo to help residents process the traumatic summer of 2017.

“We’re at the anniversary of these wildfires,” Dewar says. “This is where we to have these kinds of events to help people get past that [trauma] and move on, and develop some resiliency. Chances are this is not our last wildfire, and it;’s certainly not going be our last disaster.”