It seems like wildfire smoke has been lingering in the Okanagan for a long time.
Smoky skies aren’t just unhealthy; they’re also costly for many people whose businesses rely on good weather.
“When the air quality is bad, we are not as busy,” Georgia Turner told Global News.
Turner works at Splash B.C., which operates a large inflatable water park on Okanagan Lake in downtown Kelowna.
“It’s had a big impact on us for sure,” Turner said Wednesday morning. “It’s been picking up ever since the smoke has been kind of going away, but the past weekend was really bad for us.”
Splash B.C. isn’t alone. Popular activities like parasailing are also being impacted by smoky skies.
Get breaking National news
“It has hurt us a little bit in terms of business, but we did have a very good July, so we are still staying afloat,” said Joel Devries with Ogopogo Parasail.
The air quality index in the Okanagan has been fluctuating between moderate health risk and very high health risk for the past week and a half.
While that is hurting many outdoor-type of business, others are actually benefiting from all that smoke, including Fun Bugs, an indoor play centre for young children.
Lori Placide owns Fun Bugs. She said summer time is usually a slow time for her type of business as people want to be outdoors.
“On an average day in the summer, we would go from 10 to 15 kids a day,” Placide said.
But the smoke is now bringing in about 100 children a day.
The boost in business has prompted her to extend her opening hours and bring in extra staff.
As for the businesses that rely on good weather, some are getting creative in attracting customers, including offering discounts.
“If people walk by and we go ‘You guys want to go for a parasail?’ and they go ‘No, it’s pretty smoky,’ I go ‘I’ll give you a smoking deal,’ and they’ll bite for it,” Devries said.
Comments