DAILY INTELLIGENCE LOG

STRUCTURE DEFENCE

British Columbia & Alberta

Monday, September 14, 2026

Information current as of approximately 8:30 a.m. Pacific Time.

Wildfire conditions, evacuation boundaries, road access, fire restrictions and recovery hazards can change quickly.

Official instructions from the responsible First Nation, local government, emergency authority, transportation agency or wildfire service always take priority.

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STRUCTURE DEFENCE TAKEAWAY

Here’s what we know:

The broad wildfire picture continues to favour recovery and de-escalation rather than renewed major escalation.

This morning’s significant-incident scan did not identify a newly emerging major interface wildfire, rapid-growth event threatening a significant community, large new evacuation expansion, newly affected major First Nation jurisdiction, or major new wildfire-related highway closure in the principal British Columbia and Alberta regions reviewed.

The remaining B.C. emergency footprint is increasingly localized.

EmergencyInfoBC continues to list Okanagan Indian Band as the most recently updated active wildfire evacuation emergency, with its latest update dated September 9.

Multiple Evacuation Orders remained in effect in that update following staged Bradley Creek rescindments.

Spuzzum First Nation also remains listed as an active wildfire emergency. Its latest published update, dated September 2, placed several reserve areas under Evacuation Alert rather than Order.

Several additional B.C. wildfire emergency listings are older. They remain visible through EmergencyInfoBC, but this report does not carry their old property-level boundaries forward as though they were freshly verified today.

Bald Range remains predominantly a recovery operation.

The BC Wildfire Service Area Restriction was rescinded September 4.

However, significant wildfire consequences remain around Faulder and South Meadow Valley:

• The Faulder Water System remains under a Do Not Consume order.

• Access remains restricted to designated fire-affected properties.

• Princeton-Summerland Road remains closed to through traffic.

• Recovery work continues around water, utilities, debris, hazard trees and damaged infrastructure.

In the Fraser Canyon, the Ainslie Creek Area Restriction remains in force today and is currently scheduled to expire at noon tomorrow, September 15, unless BC Wildfire Service rescinds, replaces or extends it.

In southeastern B.C., Matthew Creek remains an active restricted wildfire environment west of Kimberley.

No sufficiently fresh authoritative fire-size update was identified this morning. An older September 3 estimate is therefore not being carried forward as though it were a September 14 measurement.

Restrictions continue to ease elsewhere.

There are now no BC Wildfire Service open-fire prohibitions in the Northwest Fire Centre following the Category 3 rescindment that took effect September 12.

Category 2 fires are also permitted throughout the Southeast Fire Centre, although Category 3 open fires remain prohibited there.

In Alberta, no significant new wildfire-related evacuation emergency or community-threat event was identified through the authoritative public sources reviewed this morning.

Here’s what we’re watching:

The environmental picture remains relatively favourable today.

There is no broad heat event.

The South Okanagan is around the low 20s.

The South Cariboo is around the upper teens.

Cranbrook is around the upper teens following yesterday’s rain.

Grande Prairie is around the mid-teens with some shower potential.

The more important developing signal is what happens after this cooler period.

Several regions begin warming again Wednesday through Friday.

That will gradually return drying pressure to cured grass, needles and other exposed fine fuels.

Here’s why it matters:

The broad emergency picture is quieter.

The fuel and recovery picture remains more complicated.

Fine fuels can cycle from wet to receptive within days.

Deep drought and large woody fuels recover much more slowly.

And communities affected by wildfire may continue dealing with unsafe water, damaged roads, utilities, unstable trees and burned slopes long after evacuation measures are removed.

The current trend is encouraging.

It is not the same thing as every wildfire consequence being finished.

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TODAY'S CONDITIONS

OKANAGAN INDIAN BAND — BRADLEY CREEK

Status: ELEVATED CONCERN — LOCALIZED

Here’s what we know:

Okanagan Indian Band remains the clearest active evacuation environment identified in this morning’s B.C. scan.

EmergencyInfoBC continues to list the OKIB wildfire emergency as active.

Its latest update remains September 9.

At that time, multiple Evacuation Orders remained in effect following staged partial rescindments.

A newer full rescindment was not identified before publication this morning.

Exact property status should therefore continue to be confirmed through Okanagan Indian Band rather than inferred from the broader regional trend.

Post-fire terrain hazards also remain part of the operational picture.

Previous professional assessment identified increased localized potential for:

• Flooding

• Erosion

• Debris flows

• Rockfall

• Slope instability

Bradley Creek drainage and the Westside Road crossing remain worth watching during future significant rainfall.

Here’s what we’re watching:

• Further Evacuation Order rescindments

• Property-level re-entry

• Bradley Creek drainage

• Westside Road

• Heavy rainfall

• Burned-slope behaviour

• Utility and property recovery

Here’s why it matters:

Wildfire changes more than vegetation.

It can change runoff, erosion and slope behaviour.

Those potential consequences become increasingly important as the emergency moves from active fire response toward recovery.

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BALD RANGE — FAULDER / SOUTH MEADOW VALLEY / SUMMERLAND

Status: DEVELOPING RECOVERY

Here’s what we know:

Bald Range remains primarily a recovery environment.

The BC Wildfire Service Area Restriction remains rescinded.

Local recovery restrictions remain separate.

Access restrictions continue for designated properties in:

• Faulder

• South Meadow Valley

• Callan Road

Access is limited to authorized property owners and approved individuals with valid permits.

Princeton-Summerland Road remains closed to through traffic until further notice.

Residents with authorized access and recovery crews continue to use the road under controlled conditions.

FAULDER WATER SYSTEM

The Do Not Consume order issued September 10 remains the latest official water-system status identified this morning.

Residents should continue following RDOS and Interior Health instructions until the order is formally rescinded.

Recovery work includes:

• Distribution-system flushing

• Verification of underground infrastructure

• System repressurization

• Water-quality sampling

Wildfire impacts included:

• Loss of remote communications

• Reservoir depletion during the emergency

• Severe powerline damage

• Telecommunications damage

• Significant tree damage

The community wells, pumphouse, treatment plant, generators and reservoir experienced comparatively limited direct damage.

Power has been restored to the treatment plant.

WEATHER

Summerland is approximately 10°C this morning.

Today is mainly sunny with a high around 21°C.

Tuesday brings cooler conditions and some shower potential.

A warmer and sunnier period then develops Wednesday through Friday, with temperatures returning into the low-to-mid 20s.

Here’s what we’re watching:

• Faulder Do Not Consume order

• Water sampling and eventual restoration

• Meadow Valley aquifer protection

• Princeton-Summerland Road reopening

• Property-access restrictions

• Hazard trees

• Ash pits and residual heat

• Mid-week fine-fuel drying

• Debris removal and rebuilding

Here’s why it matters:

This is now a wildfire-recovery problem more than a fire-spread problem.

Safe water, roads, power, telecommunications, debris and access can remain significant long after broad wildfire suppression restrictions are removed.

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FRASER CANYON — AINSLIE CREEK / SPUZZUM

Status: DEVELOPING RECOVERY WITH ACTIVE RESTRICTION

Here’s what we know:

Spuzzum First Nation remains listed as an active wildfire emergency.

Its latest published update places the following areas under Evacuation Alert:

• Stout 8

• Spuzzum 7

• Papsilqua 2

• Papsilqua 2A

• Papsilqua 2B

• Skuet 6

No newer escalation was identified this morning.

Ainslie Creek remains under a BC Wildfire Service Area Restriction today.

The current order expires at:

12:00 noon Tuesday, September 15

unless it is rescinded, replaced or extended.

The restriction exists for public and responder safety in areas where fire-suppression activity continues.

No new major wildfire-related Highway 1 closure was identified this morning.

Here’s what we’re watching:

• Spuzzum Evacuation Alert

• Ainslie Creek Area Restriction

• Tomorrow’s September 15 restriction decision

• Hazard trees

• Burned-slope stability

• Highway and utility recovery

• Fine-fuel drying later this week

Here’s why it matters:

Tomorrow is a useful operational checkpoint.

If the restriction expires or is rescinded, that would represent another clear step toward recovery.

If it is extended, that would indicate BC Wildfire Service still requires operational separation around the incident.

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SOUTHEAST BRITISH COLUMBIA — MATTHEW CREEK

Status: DEVELOPING RECOVERY / ACTIVE RESTRICTION

Here’s what we know:

Matthew Creek remains an active restricted wildfire environment west of Kimberley.

BC Wildfire Service reduced the Area Restriction September 3 following improving fire conditions and suppression progress.

The restriction was reduced.

It was not rescinded.

Travel remains prohibited on Matthew Creek Forest Service Road within the restricted area.

The published order remains scheduled through October 31 unless rescinded earlier.

No sufficiently fresh authoritative fire-size update was identified this morning.

The older September 3 fire-size estimate is therefore not being carried forward as today's number.

WEATHER

Yesterday brought meaningful rain into the Cranbrook area.

Today improves to a mix of sun and cloud with a high around 17–18°C.

Tuesday remains relatively cool.

A noticeable warming and drying trend develops afterward:

• Wednesday — around 20–21°C

• Thursday — around 22–23°C

• Friday — around 23°C

Here’s what we’re watching:

• Matthew Creek Area Restriction

• Suppression progress

• Response to Sunday rainfall

• Deep-hotspot activity

• Wednesday-Friday drying

• Public access around the active wildfire worksite

Here’s why it matters:

Yesterday’s rain was favourable.

The question now becomes how quickly the landscape dries after it.

Surface fuels may respond within days even while deeper fuels retain moisture.

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SOUTH CARIBOO

Status: NORMAL OBSERVATION

Here’s what we know:

The South Cariboo wildfire emergency footprint remains substantially smaller than it was earlier in the season.

Pear Lake no longer has an active SLRD wildfire Order or Alert.

Several Stswecem’c Xget’tem and Cariboo Regional District evacuation measures were also rescinded earlier this month.

No renewed major community wildfire escalation was identified this morning.

Clinton is expected to reach approximately 18°C today under a mix of sun and cloud.

There is increased shower potential tonight.

Tuesday remains moderate before a more noticeable warming trend develops Wednesday.

Here’s what we’re watching:

• Rural recovery

• Ranch and livestock impacts

• Residual hotspots

• Grass curing

• Wednesday-Friday drying

• Holdover smoke

Here’s why it matters:

The immediate life-safety picture is much quieter.

Fine fuels remain capable of responding rapidly when several sunny days return.

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NORTHERN B.C. — OPEN-BURNING ENVIRONMENT

Status: DEVELOPING TREND

Here’s what we know:

Open-fire restrictions continue easing in northern British Columbia.

Effective September 12:

Category 3 open burning became permitted throughout the Northwest Fire Centre.

That means there are currently no BC Wildfire Service open-fire prohibitions within the Northwest Fire Centre.

Category 3 burns still require a burn registration number.

Local governments may maintain additional restrictions.

Here’s what we’re watching:

• Land-clearing and debris burning

• Agricultural burning

• Wind during open burns

• Holdover heat in large piles

• Escape beyond established fuel breaks

• Human-caused wildfire starts

Here’s why it matters:

The rescindment reflects improving wildfire conditions.

It also places more responsibility back on individual burners.

More legal fire on the landscape creates more opportunity for an avoidable ignition if a burn is poorly managed.

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ALBERTA

Status: NORMAL OBSERVATION

Here’s what we know:

No significant new Alberta wildfire evacuation emergency or major community-threat event was identified during this morning’s authoritative-source scan.

Alberta Wildfire's live status map remains the appropriate source for individual active-fire status.

Searchable narrative updates available this morning were not fresh enough to responsibly carry specific older fire sizes or control classifications forward as September 14 figures.

Those figures are therefore not being repeated.

Grande Prairie remains in a moderate fire-weather environment today.

Forecast:

• High approximately 15°C

• 30% chance of showers

• Clear tonight

• Overnight low near 0°C

Tuesday becomes sunny near 18°C.

Wednesday reaches approximately 20°C.

Thursday reaches approximately 21°C.

Here’s what we’re watching:

• New out-of-control fires

• Community or infrastructure exposure

• Evacuation actions

• Tuesday-Thursday fine-fuel drying

• Agricultural and harvest-related ignition

• Fire-advisory or restriction changes

Here’s why it matters:

The immediate environmental signal is favourable.

A few sunnier days follow.

That makes fine-fuel drying worth watching without suggesting that a major Alberta escalation is developing.

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ENVIRONMENTAL INDICATORS

HEAT AND CONSECUTIVE HOT DAYS

Status: NORMAL OBSERVATION

Here’s what we know:

There is no broad significant heat event.

Representative highs today:

• Summerland — approximately 21°C

• Clinton — approximately 18°C

• Cranbrook — approximately 17–18°C

• Grande Prairie — approximately 15°C

No monitored priority region is entering a sequence of consecutive 30°C-plus days.

Here’s what we’re watching:

• Wednesday-Friday warming

• Afternoon relative humidity

• South- and west-facing slopes

• Grass and roadside fuels

• Overnight humidity recovery

Here’s why it matters:

Fine-fuel drying does not require extreme heat.

But moderate warming over several days is materially different from the prolonged heat environment that drove major summer escalation.

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RAINFALL AND DRYING

Status: DEVELOPING TREND — TRANSITION AFTER RAIN

Here’s what we know:

The strongest recent moisture signal occurred in southeastern B.C.

Cranbrook received a wet Sunday and now transitions back toward drier weather.

South Okanagan:

• Mainly dry today

• Some shower potential Tuesday

• Warmer and sunnier Wednesday through Friday

South Cariboo:

• Moderate today

• Shower potential tonight

• Warmer later in the week

Grande Prairie:

• Some shower potential today

• Several increasingly sunny days follow

Here’s what we’re watching:

• Actual precipitation amounts

• Geographic coverage

• Duration of subsequent drying

• Fine-fuel response

• Moisture retention in duff and heavier fuels

• Runoff on recent burn scars

Here’s why it matters:

The useful question is no longer simply whether it rained.

It is:

Where did it rain?

How much?

What fuels received the moisture?

And how long does the moisture benefit last?

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DROUGHT CODE AND FIRE-WEATHER INDICATORS

Status: NORMAL OBSERVATION

Here’s what we know:

Repeated rainfall, cooler nights and stronger overnight humidity recovery continue to improve short-duration fire-weather conditions compared with August.

Fine Fuel Moisture Code can respond quickly to those conditions.

Drought Code and Buildup Index respond much more slowly.

No sufficiently fresh and comparable authoritative station dataset was identified this morning that would justify publishing one broad Drought Code or Buildup Index value across the Okanagan, Fraser Canyon, Cariboo, Southeast and Alberta.

No broad regional value is therefore being published.

Here’s what we’re watching:

• Station-level Drought Code

• Buildup Index

• Fine Fuel Moisture Code

• Overnight humidity recovery

• Wednesday-Friday drying

• Deep-hotspot response

Here’s why it matters:

Surface fuels and deep seasonal dryness operate on different timelines.

A damp surface does not necessarily mean deeper drought has disappeared.

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WIND

Status: NORMAL OBSERVATION

Here’s what we know:

No broad severe-wind event is driving today's wildfire picture across the priority regions.

Wind is not currently the dominant regional variable.

Here’s what we’re watching:

• Local valley winds

• Wind during open burning

• Wind accompanying future frontal passages

• Hazard-tree movement

• Wind alignment with any remaining active fire edge

Here’s why it matters:

The lack of a strong regional wind signal reduces the likelihood of abrupt changes in broad surface-fire behaviour.

Localized wind can still matter at individual incidents.

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LIGHTNING AND HOLDOVER-FIRE POTENTIAL

Status: NORMAL OBSERVATION

Here’s what we know:

No major lightning outbreak dominates today’s priority regions.

Holdover detection remains the more useful concern.

Earlier lightning ignitions may remain concealed within:

• Duff

• Roots

• Heavy woody material

• Organic soil

before becoming visible during later drying.

Here’s what we’re watching:

• New smoke outside established wildfire perimeters

• New Initial Attack incidents

• Holdover fires emerging Wednesday through Friday

• New lightning with future weather systems

Here’s why it matters:

Rain can suppress visible smoke without necessarily extinguishing every concealed ignition.

A warmer period afterward is often when those fires become easier to detect.

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GRASS CURING AND HUMAN ACTIVITY

Status: DEVELOPING TREND

Here’s what we know:

Cured grass remains widespread across Interior B.C. and Alberta.

Rain changes its moisture content.

It does not remove the fuel.

Meanwhile, open-fire restrictions continue easing.

Current examples include:

• Category 1 campfires permitted across the Cariboo Fire Centre.

• Category 2 fires permitted throughout the Southeast Fire Centre.

• Category 3 fires remain prohibited in the Southeast.

• No BCWS open-fire prohibition remains in the Northwest Fire Centre.

Common preventable ignition sources remain:

• Campfires not fully extinguished

• Escaped debris or pile burns

• Agricultural machinery

• Harvest equipment

• Hot exhaust systems in cured grass

• Trailer chains dragging on pavement

• Bearings and mechanical failures

• Smoking materials

Here’s what we’re watching:

• Open-burning escapes

• Campfire escapes

• Agricultural fires

• Harvest-related starts

• Roadside fires

• OHV-related ignition

Here’s why it matters:

As extreme fire weather becomes less dominant, preventable human-caused ignition becomes proportionally more important.

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RESTRICTIONS AND PROHIBITIONS

Here’s what we know:

CARIBOO FIRE CENTRE

• Category 1 campfires are permitted.

• Category 2 open fires remain prohibited.

• Category 3 open fires remain prohibited under the current published order.

SOUTHEAST FIRE CENTRE

• Category 1 campfires are permitted.

• Category 2 open fires are permitted.

• Category 3 open fires remain prohibited.

NORTHWEST FIRE CENTRE

• Category 1 fires are permitted.

• Category 2 fires are permitted.

• Category 3 fires are permitted.

• No BCWS open-fire prohibition remains in effect across the Fire Centre.

• Category 3 burns continue to require registration.

COASTAL FIRE CENTRE

• Category 1 campfires are permitted.

• Category 2 and Category 3 restrictions remain in most of the Fire Centre outside Haida Gwaii.

AINSLIE CREEK

• Area Restriction remains active today.

• Current order expires at noon September 15 unless changed.

MATTHEW CREEK

• Reduced Area Restriction remains active.

• Matthew Creek Forest Service Road remains closed within the restricted area.

• Current order remains scheduled through October 31 unless rescinded earlier.

BALD RANGE

• BC Wildfire Service Area Restriction remains rescinded.

• RDOS property-access controls remain separate.

Here’s why it matters:

The restriction environment has become highly localized.

A Category 3 burn can now be legal in one part of B.C. while remaining prohibited elsewhere.

An individual wildfire can also retain an Area Restriction even when regional open-fire restrictions are being relaxed.

Always verify both the activity and the exact location.

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HOMEOWNER IMPLICATIONS

For residents still under an Evacuation Order:

• Follow the issuing First Nation or local authority.

• Do not interpret favourable regional weather as permission to return.

For residents under Evacuation Alert:

• Maintain the practical ability to leave.

• Keep identification, medications and essential documents accessible.

• Maintain transportation plans for pets, livestock and anyone requiring additional time.

For residents returning after wildfire:

• Confirm property and road access.

• Follow drinking-water advisories exactly.

• A Do Not Consume order cannot be resolved simply by boiling the water.

• Treat damaged electrical infrastructure as energized until confirmed safe.

• Watch for unstable trees and burned roots.

• Avoid ash pits and areas of residual heat.

• Use additional caution around burned slopes and drainage channels during heavy rainfall.

For homeowners outside active emergency areas:

This remains a useful period for resilience work.

Consider:

• Cleaning roofs and gutters

• Removing needles and combustible debris immediately beside structures

• Keeping cured grass short

• Checking hoses, pumps and fittings

• Maintaining emergency-vehicle access

• Checking drainage before autumn rainfall

• Confirming current restrictions before any open burning

These actions improve preparedness.

They are not predictions and cannot guarantee structure survival.

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WHAT CHANGED SINCE YESTERDAY

SIGNIFICANT-INCIDENT SCAN

• No newly verified major interface wildfire escalation was identified.

• No newly verified large evacuation expansion was identified.

• No newly affected major community or First Nation jurisdiction was identified.

• No new major wildfire-related highway closure was identified.

• No significant new Alberta community wildfire escalation was identified through the authoritative sources reviewed.

OKANAGAN INDIAN BAND

• September 9 remains the freshest authoritative evacuation update identified.

• Multiple Evacuation Orders remained in effect in that update.

• No newer complete rescindment was identified this morning.

BALD RANGE / FAULDER

• Recovery remains the dominant issue.

• Faulder Water System remains under a Do Not Consume order.

• Property-access controls remain.

• Princeton-Summerland Road remains closed to through traffic.

• No newer RDOS recovery release superseding the September 11 update was identified before publication.

AINSLIE CREEK

• Area Restriction remains active today.

• The current order reaches its scheduled expiry at noon tomorrow, September 15.

MATTHEW CREEK

• Area Restriction remains the latest published authoritative restriction.

• No fresh enough authoritative fire-size update was identified to publish a September 14 size.

SOUTHEAST WEATHER

• Yesterday’s rainfall has been replaced by cooler, mixed conditions today.

• A gradual drying and warming trend begins Wednesday.

NORTHERN B.C.

• Category 3 open burning is now permitted throughout the Northwest Fire Centre.

• There are no BCWS open-fire prohibitions in the Northwest Fire Centre.

ALBERTA

• No significant new wildfire evacuation or community-threat event was identified.

• Grande Prairie remains moderate with shower potential today before several sunnier days.

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WHAT WE’RE WATCHING NEXT

• Remaining Okanagan Indian Band Evacuation Orders

• Further Bradley Creek re-entry

• Bradley Creek drainage and post-fire slope hazards

• Spuzzum First Nation Evacuation Alert

• Ainslie Creek Area Restriction decision tomorrow, September 15

• Matthew Creek Area Restriction

• Matthew Creek response to recent rainfall

• Faulder Water System Do Not Consume order

• Faulder water sampling and restoration

• Meadow Valley aquifer protection

• Princeton-Summerland Road reopening

• Burn-scar runoff and erosion during future heavy rainfall

• Wednesday-Friday warming and fine-fuel drying

• Holdover-fire detection after recent rainfall

• Station-level Drought Code and Buildup Index where fresh authoritative information becomes useful

• Open-burning escapes as restrictions continue to ease

• Campfire-related starts

• Agricultural and harvesting ignitions

• New out-of-control fires in B.C. or Alberta

• Rapid fire growth

• Newly affected communities or First Nations jurisdictions

• Structure or infrastructure exposure

• Highway or access impacts

Here’s what we know.

The broad wildfire emergency footprint continues to shrink.

Here’s what we’re watching.

The remaining localized evacuation environments, active incident restrictions, infrastructure recovery, the next drying cycle and human-caused ignition.

Here’s why it matters.

Wildfire season is becoming quieter.

Wildfire consequence continues.

For firefighters, this increasingly means mop-up, patrol and detection.

For affected communities, it means safe water, roads, utilities, access and rebuilding.

For homeowners, it remains an opportunity to improve resilience while conditions are comparatively favourable.

Indicators describe conditions.

They do not predict what an individual wildfire will do next.

Official emergency instructions always take priority.

Wildfire resilience starts before wildfire arrives.

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SOURCES CONSULTED

• BC Wildfire Service

• EmergencyInfoBC

• Okanagan Indian Band

• Spuzzum First Nation

• Regional District of Okanagan-Similkameen

• Environment and Climate Change Canada

• Alberta Wildfire

• Alberta Wildfire Status

• Alberta Emergency Alert