‘Let’s inspire the next generation’: West Kelowna fire chief

Gatorade, coffee, muffins, home-cooked meals — no matter where you look at the West Kelowna fire hall, there’s been something to eat, delivered with love and appreciation.

That love and appreciation, however, needs to be expressed in a less perishable way, fire chief Jason Brolund explained at a Monday press conference, updating the community about the fires that have dominated their thoughts in the last three days.

“I know many of you feel helpless, and that there’s nothing that you can do. I know many of you feel like the way you can help us is by bringing us something in the early days of this incident,” Brolund said.

“We have been so appreciative of the water and Gatorade and food and fruit and vegetables and you name it, you have brought it to us. But quite frankly, folks, it’s becoming overwhelming and it’s becoming unsafe.”

3:37 50 homes confirmed lost to McDougall Creek Wildfire in West Kelowna

Brolund said he can’t wait for the day he can have a home-cooked meal, again, but the firehall isn’t the place for it because he can’t serve it to firefighters’ safely.

“So what I’m asking for is, instead of your donations of food and water and all of that, is for you to write a card or put a post on social media.

“Thank the firefighters that are out there kicking ass. Make them know that you understand what they’re doing and put it out there.”

Show that by teaching them what it means to be a public servant, he said.

“Let’s inspire the next generation through the public services happening out there today,” he said.

Brolund said that Lake Country fire chief Darren Lee put it best during a Sunday press conference, when he explained the sacrifices being made.

“For thousands of years, just regular people step up to be warriors, to protect their villages, protect their neighbours, and you know, there’s people out there working 36- to 48-hour shifts and they take an absolute beating,” Lee said Sunday, with his voice breaking with emotion.

“They know their families being evacuated while they’re trying to defend their neighbour’s home and they just keep going. They work under incredibly dangerous conditions. One of my firefighters asked me today about some safety concerns and I said, ‘You’ve got to learn from it and move on. You’re better today than you were yesterday.'”

0:45 ‘Progress made on fire‘: Battle against West Kelowna fire ongoing

As he became emotional again during Monday’s press conference, Lee joked he was going to hear from his mother.

That any sort of levity is starting to edge its way into these updates reflects the changes on the front lines of fires burning across the Central Okanagan. Cooler, damper weather has given firefighters the opportunity to make gains in their efforts to protect property and knock down the fires threatening the community.

But with thousands still evacuated and news that there have been 50 structures lost in West Kelowna, five in Kelowna and two to three in Lake Country emerging today, it’s clear that there’s a long road ahead.

“So my ask again is as it has been for the last several days, I ask for your patience,” Brolund said.

“I ask for your calmness. I aske for your cooperation with us. And most of all I asked in whatever you’re doing out there, do it safely. These are the things that we’re doing in the field and these are the things that I’m asking the public to do as well.”