The RDNO hosted a seminar in Electoral Area F near Ashton Creek to teach residents how to FireSmart their property Saturday, June 8.
The workshop covered a brief outline of the FireSmart Program and the simple steps any resident can undertake to protect their home from wildfire.
“The important message we would like to get out is that there are actions that people can take to make their homes less susceptible to the threat of wildfires. We offer workshops and resources by partnering with FireSmart BC and would love to host more events like this,” said Mike Moyer, Safe Communities Coordinator, RDNO.
About 20 residents were in attendance, interested in learning how to inspect their properties to identify potential fire fuels and how to remove those to reduce the potential impacts on their homes from wildfires.
“An important part of the seminar was the site demonstration. This demonstration helped to put the concepts into practice by going to a home and identifying loose logs and branches that were too close to the house,” said Alastair Crick, Manager of Protective Services, RDNO.
“We were also able to show real examples of ladder fuels, which are low hanging branches that a brush fire could use to basically climb a tree and become a larger threat. Pruning lower limbs is the best way to avoid this type of risk.”
Moyer also explained the role of the Block Watch in FireSmarting a community. Block Watch gives a community the platform to band together for crime prevention and has been shown to work well as a way to FireSmart a neighbourhood as a group.
Anyone interested in learning more can visit www.firesmartbc.ca or contact the RDNO at 250-550-3700 to request a presentation.
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