A B.C. wildfire may have thrown their wedding plans up in smoke, but an Alberta couple still managed to tie the knot in a setting they’ll never forget.
Lara Agapow and Tristen Vander Klok had visited her parents last month as they planned a wedding to take place at their Hanceville, B.C. ranch on Aug. 19.
The pair were in the area to obtain a marriage licence and have their wedding rings sized.
Coverage of the B.C. wildfires on Globalnews.ca:
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Loon Lake wildfire evacuees return home -
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More concern for battle against BC Wildfires as many seasonal firefighters pulling out and heading back to school -
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Wildfire quickly snuffed out by West Kelowna fire crews -
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Vancouver Island firefighters share dramatic stories about B.C. wildfires -
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Spallumcheen wildfire contained
Then a wildfire broke out near the family ranch within five hours of them arriving there, according to a Facebook post by the Royal Canadian Navy.
The couple dropped everything and joined her parents in helping to save the home from the Hanceville-Riske Creek wildfire — a blaze most recently estimated at over 227,000 hectares in size.
Agapow and Vander Klok, who are members of the fire department in Peace River, Alta., helped to save the ranch and neighbouring properties.
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They later found work with the BC Wildfire Service, looking after logistics at the Riske Creek wildfire camp.
But with the area under an evacuation order, their original wedding plans fell apart.
Lara still wanted to hold the wedding on the date she and Tristan had originally planned for — but at the fire camp where they would be surrounded by newfound friends and colleagues.
Juri, a Canadian Ranger, helped arrange to hold the ceremony at the military base for Operation LENTUS, which is the name for the Canadian Forces response to natural disasters.
Lara and Tristan held their wedding on Saturday, with a Light-Armoured Vehicle 6 (LAV 6) serving as a backdrop.
“Everybody just came together. It was planned two days in advance,” Lara told Global News.
The couple didn’t have much in the way of a honeymoon. Tristan returned to work on Monday and Lara will return Tuesday.
READ MORE: B.C. wildfires map 2017: Current location of wildfires around the province
“There’s lots of work to be done,” Lara said.
While it wasn’t the wedding they envisioned, Lara said she wouldn’t have it any other way.
“Nothing could have topped this considering what we’ve been through,” she said.
“Our other wedding plans were phenomenal and would have been beautiful, but the way everybody came together for this, nothing could top it.”
Here are some more photos from Agapow and Vander Klok’s wedding:
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