Frustration is growing among Summerland evacuees who want to know when they can return home, but emergency officials said Tuesday the volatility of the Bald Range wildfire makes it impossible to give them a firm timeline.
The wildfire was estimated at 17,802 hectares Tuesday, according to B.C. Wildfire Service.
The Regional District of Okanagan-Similkameen said the entire District of Summerland, representing 5,688 properties, is under evacuation order. It said 451 properties within the RDOS and 38 Penticton Indian Band properties are also under order.
The RDOS said 1,065 properties are under evacuation alert, while 1,082 Penticton Indian Band properties are under alert.
Regional District of Okanagan-Similkameen officials addressed mounting questions about re-entry during a public briefing Tuesday, Aug. 11, acknowledging that people who have spent days away from their homes want more concrete information about what happens next.
Summerland Mayor Doug Holmes, who is also under evacuation order, said he has been spending time at the evacuation centre and has noticed a change in the mood.
People growing impatient
“In the last couple days and today, especially, I think people are getting a little more frustrated and impatient,” Holmes said.
“We all just want to go home.”
Holmes said evacuees understand the severity of the situation and the need to let emergency crews do their jobs, but that understanding does not make being displaced easier.
He said people know the community is not safe and that emergency crews have work to do, but they also simply want to return home.
He described the situation as “very emotional for everybody.”
Regional Emergency Operations Centre director Graham Statt, who is also the District of Summerland’s chief administrative officer, said officials are planning for re-entry, but those plans can change several times in a single day because of wildfire conditions.
Statt said officials cannot provide a detailed timetable while they wait for B.C. Wildfire Service to determine where it is safe to enter.
“This is a very aggressive fire, and fire is hard to predict at the best of times,” Statt said.
He said the more aggressive a wildfire becomes, the more difficult it is to predict what it will do next.
Unpredictable fire behaviour the challenge
“Nobody exactly knows what’s going to happen next in terms of that fire,” Statt said.
Statt said re-entry will require more than determining whether flames have moved away from a neighbourhood.
He said crews need to assess affected areas for hazards including damaged structures, downed power lines, burned trees and debris.
In less affected areas, Statt said that assessment could amount to crews driving through neighbourhoods and checking conditions. Areas with heavier damage will require more detailed inspections.
Statt said power, drinking water and wastewater systems also have to be assessed and restored where necessary.
He said water quality may have to be evaluated for contamination from fire retardant or other contaminants, while waste disposal presents another challenge because the Summerland landfill is on fire.
Statt said plans are being developed in real time and can change several times throughout the day as conditions on the ground shift.
“What we do here is not a committee,” he said. “We have experts, we have regulated professionals, we have people with previous experience.”
Holmes said the wildfire is burning within Summerland and warned that an area appearing calm does not mean it is safe for residents to return.
He pointed to the landfill fire and said the wildfire has to be brought under control before officials can consider allowing residents back in. He said infrastructure, spot fires and other hazards would then have to be assessed.
Case-by-case assessments underway
Temporary access permits are being assessed case by case.
Regional Emergency Operations Centre director Deborah Jones-Middleton, the RDOS senior manager of protective services, said priority is being given to utilities and other essential work needed to prepare communities for residents.
She said B.C. Wildfire Service determines whether an area is safe enough to enter and officials cannot allow residents into locations where emergency crews are working.
Jones-Middleton said many of those working on the emergency response have also been evacuated.
“I want to go home and sleep in my bed too,” she said.
She asked residents for patience while officials work toward re-entry.
Officials also had a message for residents in areas under evacuation alert.
“This is the time to prepare,” Jones-Middleton said.
She urged people to be ready to leave if fire conditions shift toward their area and to be prepared to stay away from home for a period of time.
The RDOS said Hwy. 97 will reopen only when the B.C. Ministry of Transportation and Transit and B.C. Wildfire Service determine it is safe to do so.
Officials said a lack of a new update for a particular neighbourhood generally means conditions there have not changed.
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