Skwlāx te Secwepemcúl̓ecw community comes together to mark one year of recovery from devastating Bush Creek fire

SKWLAX – Sunday was an emotional day for the Skwlāx First Nation as it marked one year since the Bush Creek East wildfire ripped through the land. Over the weekend, the community came together to commemorate the one-year anniversary.

“Well, I’m so proud of them. The resiliency of my band members that they’re able to do this and become a community —it makes me so proud seeing everybody smile and laugh and acknowledging them being here,” said Kukpi7 James Tomma.

The Bush Creek East wildfire caused major losses of structures in the Shuswap area and forced the evacuation of dozens of homes. In December of 2023, it was declared out. Since that date, the Skwlāx First Nation has made substantial progress in recovery

“In a year, we’ve made some very significant strides to getting our people housed back onto the reserve. We have about 70-to-80 per cent of the band members back on our land with the rapid housing initiative and, by November, we should be seeing the last of the band members returning. Then I can return sometime in December,” added Tomma.

The Skwlāx te Secwepemcúl̓ecw nation believes a big reason for the progress is how close the community became during the evacuation, being forced from their homes and taking care of each other in a brand new environment. While the road to a full recovery is still long, the band knows it has powered through tough times to get to this point

“We established a family connection,” said Skwlāx councillor Dawn Francois. “Talking, interacting, engaging every day — we were looking after each other. We were looking after the wellbeing of the people.”

“Just the acknowledgment from everybody and how good this band is doing,” added Tomma. “They’re showing they have the ability to overcome anything that’s put in front of them now.”