A letter and petition, along with the BC Conservatives, are calling on Premier David Eby to declare a state of emergency in the face of massive wildfires burning in the Southern Interior.
The letter template has been shared in multiple Cariboo Facebook groups, with individuals chiming in both for and against the proposal, and some saying they have sent the letter to the government.
“I am writing as a gravely concerned resident of the Cariboo and as one of many people who are increasingly frightened and overwhelmed by the wildfire situation facing our communities. Already many are evacuated and have lost everything!” reads the letter addressed to Eby.
“WE NEED HELP. We need to be heard. And we need to know that our government understands the seriousness of what is happening here.”
A petition on change.org, also calling for a provincial state of emergency due to the Cariboo wildfires, has garnered 749 signatures as of Saturday morning and is gaining momentum.
“We, the undersigned, urgently call on Premier David Eby and the Government of British Columbia to immediately assess the rapidly escalating wildfire crisis in the Cariboo and to declare a Provincial State of Emergency without delay if the legal criteria are met,” the petition explanation reads.
On Aug. 1, there are seven out-of-control wildfires in the Cariboo region. The most significant is the Pear Lake fire, which is burning at 103,920 hectares as of the morning of Saturday, Aug. 1 and has eight evacuation orders and three evacuation alerts associated with it. The BC Wildfire Service is anticipating extreme fire behaviour through the day.
READ MORE: Extreme fire behaviour expected as Pear Lake wildfire grows to 90,475 hectares
“The scale of what we are facing is almost impossible to comprehend,” the letter reads. “The Pear Lake fire alone is more than five times the size of Vancouver. This is not an isolated incident affecting a remote area. This is a crisis affecting entire communities and the people who live and work here.”
The letter says they are not “asking for empty promises,” but for leadership, resources, coordination and protection.
“Please declare a Provincial State of Emergency, or immediately take whatever extraordinary measures are available to ensure the Cariboo and Thompson-Nicola regions receive every available resource necessary to protect people, property, animals, farms, businesses and communities.”
The Conservative Party of B.C. also released a statement on Saturday morning calling for the immediate declaration of a local state of emergency in the South Cariboo.
The release says that Lorne Doerkson, MLA for Cariboo-Chilcotin, is calling on Eby and Ravi Parmar, minister of forests, to make the declaration.
“The situation is becoming increasingly serious, with one wildfire growing by more than 17,000 hectares in just 24 hours. With strong winds expected this weekend, there are growing concerns these fires could spread rapidly and threaten communities and firefighters,” the Conservatives’ statement says.
Doerkson is quoted in the release saying he is deeply concerned that current resources may not be able to keep pace with the rapidly growing fires.
“Residents across the South Cariboo are extremely worried as these fires continue to grow, and with challenging weather expected this weekend, we need more resources on the ground now to protect homes, businesses, ranches, critical infrastructure, and the people who call this region home. Residents must also be assured that the 100 Mile District General Hospital, which has experienced several ER closures in recent weeks, will remain open during this critical time.”
He said the local state of emergency would be to protect lives, communities, and the firefighters on the front lines.
Kerry-Lynne Findlay, the leader of the Conservative Party of B.C., echoed the concerns.
“Lorne Doerkson is right to be calling for a state of emergency in the South Cariboo, and I stand firmly with him and with the residents who are facing this growing crisis.”
Across the various Facebook posts sharing the letter template, there are some in the comments who do not support a state of emergency, worrying about increased government power or noting that it may not actually help to combat the blazes, among other critiques of the idea.
“Careful what you wish for,” reads a comment from Jody Goffic.
A comment from Dustin Campbell says, “You know that declaring an SOE doesn’t magically open up additional coffers or bring new people in, right? Declaring an SOE doesn’t suddenly give BC the right to issue commands to an army.”
He goes on to speak about the additional powers a state of emergency would imply, specifically related to private property use by the government and mandatory evacuations.
“Generally speaking governments won’t sign off on an SOE if the frontline managers don’t request it. In this case, BC Wildfire hasn’t requested it, as they feel they don’t need those extraordinary powers yet.”
Ashley Wiebe Hunt also commented on one of the posts, asking what people expect from a state of emergency.
“My experience with it means military police, road blocks with spike belts, and resources of food and supplies was cut off by the extra enforcement. No extra help on their actual fire,” she said.
“Maybe some funds for people evacuated which is nice but that just means your evacuation ran much longer with zero resources for fire personnel and the extra harassment to locals… just my two cents. Someone can chime in with the benefits I’m unaware of.”