Shuswap residents return home to a community in that some areas will be unrecognizable

SCOTCH CREEK, B.C. — “The drive in here was stunningly beautiful — this beautiful tunnel of trees you went through that was green and lush,” recalled Columbia Shuswap Regional District Information Officer Tim Conrad.

What was once a picturesque gateway to the North Shuswap, now resembles something closer to a warzone, after the raging Bush Creek East wildfire burned through the community nearly three weeks ago.

“You can see the intensity of the burn that came in from the Adams Lake area and swept into the residential areas that are down towards the lake here,” said Conrad.

By the end of the day on August 18, it’s believed the fire ran more than 20 kilometres.

“We heard it was moving about 23 metres a minute,” said Scotch and Lee Creek Fire Department Captain Brian Dalgliesh.

While some homes were able to escape the wrath of Mother Nature, many others suffered a more devastating fate, including the Scotch Creek Fire Hall. Capt. Dalgliesh was just feet away when the Rank Six blaze took hold of the building he called a second home.

“Once we decided it was time to leave the bridge, we came over here and staged here (at the Fire Hall), then we had a wall of flame coming up behind our hall, the next step was moving to an evacuation and a safe zone,” said Dalgliesh.

Scotch Creek Fire Hall (image credit – CFJC Today)

“My main concern was the safety of my crew, I had about 25 to 30 guys under me at that point. I was more concerned with their safety, I was concerned about the fire coming down around me. I was concerned about my safety — it was an intense night,” continued Dalgliesh.

On Wednesday (Sept. 6), more than 10,000 residents were finally allowed back into the community, one that for many, they won’t recognize.

“It’s hard coming back to a community that looks the way that this does, because some of the landmarks just aren’t there,” said CSRD EOC Director Derek Sutherland.

With residents returning, the focus for the regional district switches to rebuilding and recovery, a process that began mere hours after the blaze ravaged the community.

“The day after the fire came through, we engaged a recovery manager in our Emergency Operations Centre to help us through this process. We are not a municipality, we are a regional district, so things are far different for us in how we manage this recovery process. We are committed to standing behind our residents,” said Sutherland.

In the community, the local fire department is working non-stop to ensure the safety of residents.

“I’m happy to see my community coming back into itself, but there is still a lot of danger out here. We got trees, we got ash pits — there are still a lot of unknowns out here. Anybody coming in, I’d just like to say please don’t go for a walk. Stay on your property for a while and let things cool down,” said Dalgliesh.

While contractors take care of danger trees and other hazards, B.C. Wildfire is planning the next stage of their battle with the blaze.

“That is one thing that we are doing right now, through this week, with infrared scanning. Doing scans of the fire perimeter and looking for those hot spots that might not be immediately visible and helping us prioritize where our crews are going to be working,” said Fire Information Officer Aydan Coray.

A total of 176 properties were lost, with 50 more damaged, though those numbers are not yet final. But buildings can be replaced and the Shuswap will rebuild.

“It’s just a building. All our members are safe, nobody died, nobody got hurt. It’s all it is,” said Capt. Dalgliesh.

“I know that people are going to come back, they are going to want to rebuild, and we are going to be here to help them,” added Sutherland.