Multiple skimmer runs were aborted from actioning the Bradley Creek wildfire over the weekend due to looky-loos.
“After all these years, it still surprises me, although by now it probably shouldn’t, the amount of effort some people put in to parking themselves directly where the aircraft needed to be,” said Vernon Search and Rescue’s (VSAR) Coralie Nairn.
VSAR worked alongside emergency crews responding to the Bradley Creek Wildfire Saturday, Aug. 1 on Okanagan Lake to usher looky-loos out of the way of water bombers and helicopters that were fighting the fire.
“We were tasked by the RCMP to clear boaters, paddle boarders, Sea-Doos and anything else floating from the flight path of the water skimmers,” said Nairn.
Nairn said the search and rescue team watched multiple skimmer runs aborted because watercraft were to0 close.
“Every aborted run is time lost when a fire is growing by the minute. Later, it was frustrating to hear comments about the lack of effort being put into fighting the fire. Let’s give our heads a shake,” stated Nairn.
“It wasn’t just the skimmer planes. Helicopter crews were making rapid rotations, trying to avoid playing a game of whack-a-mole with boats, paddle boards and Sea-Doos scattered through their pickup areas. They’d scoop water, race to the fire, return a few minutes later, and find the same area filling up again.”
As the wind got stronger and the fire worsened, the VSAR team switched their tactics to evacuation mode. Extricating people by water and having ground crews deliver evacuation notices.
“The rest of the afternoon was chaos,” said Nairn. “We watched the first home catch fire. Then another. We watched flames spread with the wind. We heard explosions. We watched wildlife swimming for their lives. We saw desperation as a homeowner tried to wet his home with a garden hose. We saw overloaded boats as people fled the only direction they could, to the water.”
As the weather intensified, the situation escalated even more.
“The calls kept coming, a capsized boat, people in the water after trying to flee the fire, paddle boarders in distress,” explained Nairn.
The team finished the day by loading two passengers, a large dog, a bird and a bearded dragon onto their rescue boat.
“Somewhere during that crossing, through some of the biggest water and strongest winds I’ve personally seen, we might have said we were beginning to resemble Noah’s Ark,” said Nairn.
Sunday saw VSAR delivering evacuation notices to residents in high risk areas with extra manpower from Central Okanagan (Kelowna), Shuswap (Salmon Arm), and Kamloops search and rescue crws.
Monday, Aug. 3 was a bit of break for the team before they were back out delivering evacuation notices on Tuesday, Aug. 4.
“There are days in Search and Rescue when you can make a direct difference,” explained Nairn. “And then there are days when you feel like you’re standing beside a runaway train, doing everything you can while knowing you can’t stop what’s coming.”
Like many others Nairn said this experience brought back memories from the 2021 White Rock Lake fire.
“My heart truly goes out to everyone affected by these fires, especially those who are living through this nightmare for a second time. No one should have to watch their community, their memories, or their home disappear twice,” she said.
Nairn finished with a message to everyone who has helped and continues to battle the fire.
“To the SAR teams, firefighters, pilots, emergency crews, RCMP, B.C. Wildfire Service, volunteers and everyone working behind the scenes, thank you. Please stay safe,” she said.
