EMERGENCY RISK REDUCTION

Records are being broken here in British Columbia. Records for dryness; lack of rainfall; hectares burned by wildfire.  Here toward the end of August, the weather station keeps saying, “It’s not rained all summer.”  More than 8 weeks. It’s wrecking havoc on the fruit and berry farm where I reside. Some of our fruit trees are splitting their limbs. We’re irrigating every night but can only do so much with this intense heat. But we can’t complain, because we’re not in the line of sight of one of the hundreds of wildfires that are burning now in British Columbia.

As I wrote earlier, these fires have absorbed huge resources. We have imported personnel from around the world, literally. Many fires are still out of control. New ones are flaring up every day. The cost is enormous, and it’s not only financial. A major industry in BC is lumber, and the resource is going up in smoke.  Literally. A buddy who just returned from fireline told me only half-jokingly that the fire fighters are saying that next year’s season should be mild….because there’s nothing left to burn! In a province the size of BC, that’s quite a statement.

Sadly, most of this could have been mitigated through well-known forestry practices, the most common which is prescribed burning. I described this in my last blog. In a nutshell, this helps prevent a ‘fuel load’ to build up, helping to eliminate an inferno rather than healthy, natural fires.  Resistance to this practice has been strong, especially from those who live in rural areas, and love the natural setting.   I appreciate this, because I own a home in the mountains of North Carolina is on a wooded lot, and I love it. But with this, comes risk. A risk of wildfire.

Wildfire risk can be covered by insurance. And the cost is one that owners should assume, but some do not. They are blissfully ignorant. They assume that if a wildfire takes out their home, the BC or Canada government will step it.  I personally have an issue with this, and take the position that homeowners need to accept this risk, and decide whether to pay expensive fire insurance to cover this loss because of their location. This is similar to a home built on a flood plain, where the view is lovely but comes with a flood risk.  I have made this personal choice and know there’s a risk of wildfire consuming my NC cabin. At this point, it’s a risk I am willing to take, although even as I write this, I am planning to revisit my insurance. In my old age, maybe a touch of wisdom is setting in.

As Summer transitions to Autumn in BC, the fires will become less frequent and intense. But the damage has already been done. The total cost will be tallied, but perhaps never fully made public. I estimate that it will approach a billion Canadian dollars.  Clearly the most expensive fire season in the history of the province.  Unfortunately the expense is not only calculated financially, but also socially and emotionally. So many lives have been disrupted. Some can rebuild – physically, socially, mentally. Others will be unable. They will need our support in tangible ways. And our prayers.

Thanks for reading.