Coquitlam's fire chief is watching the Fort McMurray wildfire with alarm, thankful that no one has died from the blaze that spread so quickly and admiring of the efforts of police and firefighters to keep people safe.
"With those are category six fires, you just get out of the way," Wade Pierlot, Coquitlam Fire Chief
"It's starting to get everyone's attention," Wade Pierlot said in an interview Wednesday. "While I would say everybody has got plans in place and are prepared, there is just no preparation for what you see in Fort McMurray.
"With those are category six fires, you just get out of the way."
Tri-City fire departments also have plans in place to deal with what are called interface fires — where wilderness and urban development meet. And with April the hottest April since 1937 and the driest in over a decade, Coquitlam's forestry interface firefighting team is already on alert, Pierlot said.
"We're about a month ahead of what we'd normally be. It's shaping up to be a real potential bad fire season with what we're seeing."
But Coquitlam would not expect to see a situation similar to the one facing residents and emergency responders in Fort McMurray because the city has access to considerably more resources and equipment. As well, temperate forest conditions — it rains more frequently here — are different from those of a dry, grassland prairie.
"Could it occur here? Not in our current understanding, but we could have real problems," Pierlot said.
To be safe, emergency personnel are well-trained, evacuation plans are in place and the city employs FireSmart guidelines.
Homes such as on those on Burke Mountain have to be built out of fire-resistant materials, for example, and, to keep things damp, approximately 900 homes in the city that border on parks and forested lands are allowed to water their lawns daily if the fire hazard rating is extreme.
When parks dry up, patrols head up to remind people not to smoke and the dampening down of tinderdry grass is a commonly-used strategy, used last year during Canada Day fireworks at Lafarge Lake.
As he watches the Fort McMurray fire, Pierlot is mindful of the need for a safe and orderly evacuation and he recommends people have a grab-and-go emergency kit handy and their vehicle at least half full of gas.
"It's a reality the whole world is facing as we notice our climate is changing," he said. "If there is something you can prepare and do, [then do it]. And others, you can't — you just have to get out of the way."
Find out more about Coquitlam's interface wildfire mitigigation strategies here.
