The Be Ready Emergency Preparedness Pop-Up will be running this weekend at Pine Centre Mall.
Tanya Spooner, the city's manager of emergency programs, spoke to The Citizen Thursday, March 27 about how the event came to be.
“Our three local governments — the City of Prince George, Regional District of Fraser-Fort George, and Lheidli T’enneh — work together regularly, both during the season and off-season, on how we can best prepare the community,” said Spooner. “One of the things we discussed for this season was how to get more personal preparedness information to the general public. We came up with the idea of hosting an event that would allow people to meet with all of us and learn about what we do. Then we thought of taking the event to the mall, instead of asking people to come to us.”
The pop-up is located next to Sephora at Pine Centre and will feature emergency and safety representatives from across Prince George.
Representatives hosting the pop-up include:
- United Way BC
- Firesmart BC
- Health Emergency Management BC
- Climate Ready BC
Visitors can expect to learn how to fireproof their homes, prepare emergency evacuation kits and understand which organizations are responsible for coordinating emergency evacuations, as well as how evacuations impact locals and the city as a whole.
One of the booths at the pop-up will feature a mock emergency reception centre, educating people on what to expect and where to go in the event of an emergency. The booth will also provide information on how emergencies are managed and how emergency representatives work to ensure evacuees are safe and comfortable.
Kyle McGee, co-ordinator of the City of Prince George's Emergency Programs Division, has first-hand experience with evacuations.
“It’s not as chaotic as people might think,” he said. “Ideally, it's an orderly process. I've been involved in evacuations in different areas where I’ve assisted, and it’s about grabbing your things and ensuring you have everything you need in a short amount of time. Firesmart has a last-minute wildfire checklist, which includes getting in your vehicle, ensuring you have fuel and following the instructions. When an evacuation order is issued, information is provided on where to go to register for support if needed.”
Wildfire safety is a major focus of the pop-up, and with wildfire season approaching, Spooner is cautiously optimistic.
“This year is a bit tricky because we’ve had two years of drought,” said Spooner. “There’s more snowpack this year than last. We expected last year to be a much worse season, but it wasn’t as bad as we anticipated. We’re cautiously optimistic that we might scrape by again. We’re not expecting as warm of a summer, but we know the reality is always present. We will never have a season where we don’t expect and plan for wildfires. That mindset has helped us move away from the complacency of thinking, ‘It will never happen here.’ At some point, something will happen close to home, and it might not be in Prince George, but in the regional district, and we will be there, helping and responding together.”
Spooner told The Citizen that there are two key components to wildfire safety this season.
“No. 1: The largest geographic area in Prince George is private residences,” said Spooner. “We want to remind people that, as much as we can work in green spaces and green belts, making your own property fire-smart is even more important because it has the greatest potential impact on your home in a wildfire. The second component is being ready to go. Have your grab-and-go bag packed, with medications, cash, spare glasses, and anything else you may need. Being able to grab your bag and leave quickly will speed up evacuations, keep you safer, and get you to safety faster.”
Spooner also added that there are approximately 20,000 hectares of private property in Prince George. If the city were to work toward making those 20,000 hectares fire-safe ahead of wildfire season, it would cost approximately $18 million.
To learn more about how to make your home fire resistant, visit firesmartbc.ca.
