CSRD seeking public input on Bush Creek East wildfire

The first of six public meetings regarding last year’s Bush Creek East wildfire will start this week.

The Columbia Shuswap Regional District will host the meetings, and it’s seeking public input on the two-month-long blaze that grew to 43,000 hectares and destroyed 176 structures.

“We are undertaking this exercise now so that we can implement some, but likely not all, suggestions for improvement for the 2024 fire season,” the regional district said.

“Some changes might be easy to put in place, others might take longer.”

2:34 ‘It’s like driving through a war zone,’ fire evacuees return home in the North Shuswap.

According to Derek Sutherland, general manager of community and protective services, “the Bush Creek East wildfire was a disaster on a scale the CSRD has not seen before. It’s critical for us to learn from this traumatic event, so we can keep improving our emergency programs.”

Below are the dates, places and times of the scheduled meetings.

Thursday, March 7

• Sorrento Memorial Hall
• 1150 Passchendale Rd.
• 6 to 8 p.m.

Saturday, March 9

• North Shuswap Elementary School
• 5295 Squilax-Anglemont Rd., Celista
• 2:30 to 4:30 p.m.

Sunday, March 7

• Lakeview Community Centre
• 7703 Squilax-Anglemont Rd., Anglemont
• 2:30 to 4:30 p.m.

Monday, March 11

• Quaaout Lodge
• 1663 Little Shuswap Lake Rd.
• 6 to 8 p.m.

Wednesday, March 13,

• Online: Virtual session
• 6:30 to 8:30 p.m.

Thursday, March 14,

• Online: Virtual session
• 6:30 to 8:30 p.m.

2:07 North Shuswap homeowners tour fire-damaged community

The public is asked to register if they plan on attending. A survey is also available. The links and survey are available online.

“We recognize that there are valid community concerns regarding rebuilding, environmental damage and geotechnical hazards,” the regional district said.

“These concerns are not the focus of this engagement process, which is designed to look back at last year’s wildfire experience.

“Moving forward, some of these ongoing issues will be addressed later on by the CSRD or other agencies.”