Firefighters from Yukon, Alberta coming to B.C. to aid in wildfire fight this week

More than 100 wildfire personnel from Mexico expected next week

Local firefighting crews will get a bit of a reprieve soon as help from other parts of North America are set to start arriving in British Columbia today.

As of Monday afternoon, there are more than 130 wildfires burning across B.C., covering tens of thousands of hectares of land. Hundreds of people are out of their homes as a result of evacuation orders, while hundreds more have been told to be ready to leave at a moment's notice.

Forests Minister Ravi Parmar said local crews are working flat out to try to stop the fires from spreading.

"We are maximizing all of our resources within British Columbia," he told CBC News Monday.

Wildfire near Clinton, B.C., expected to grow as dry conditions, stronger winds approach

A total of 25 firefighters from Yukon will arrive in B.C. on Monday, and on Tuesday 66 Albertan firefighting personnel will be on deck to help out their neighbours.

Next week, on Aug. 3, 114 personnel from Mexico are expected to join wildland firefighting efforts in British Columbia.

"Wildfire response is a shared effort, and these partnerships ensure additional support is available when conditions are most challenging," the B.C. Wildfire Service said in a provincial situation report Monday.

Parmar said those out-of-province crews help local firefighters get some time off.

"This is us now planning ahead for what very well could be a challenging end to our wildfire season into August, into September," he said.

Sebastian Kallos with the B.C. General Employees' Union, which represents about 2,000 wildland firefighters, said outside support is a must for local crews.

"Firefighters need to take a break from time to time, they can't work in perpetuity," he said.

He said wildland firefighters in B.C. work 19 days on — 14 on the fire line and other days around the office — and two days off. And while B.C. has no trouble recruiting firefighting personnel, he said, they do struggle to retain folks who work in challenging conditions for such long periods.

"No shift workers do that kind of shift rotation," Kallos said.

Thousands apply to become B.C. wildfire fighters — but only a few will make the cut

B.C. has long called on other provinces, territories and countries to help fight wildfires. In 2023, about 1,750 personnel came from outside the province to assist with what is considered the most destructive wildfire season on record.

In return, the province often sends personnel to help others when they need support — something Democratic Sen. Patty Murray recognized in statements made in the U.S. Senate last week in response to President Donald Trump's criticism of Canada's wildfire management.

Two weeks ago, in fact, 56-year-old Nicholas Dale of Sooke, B.C., died in a helicopter crash while helping fight wildfires in Colorado.

Parmar said the province has reached out to jurisdictions in the U.S., but because they're dealing with their own challenges with regards to wildfires, they aren't able to help out.

Kallos said those outside resources are becoming less available in general.

"You look at the national situation, Ontario, you know, big wildfire situation and B.C. has had a bit of a season, and so when all those agencies peak at the same time, the availability of resources becomes less," he said.

Courtney Dickson is a journalist with CBC News based in Vancouver, covering stories throughout B.C. She has previously worked for CBC in Kamloops and Toronto. She has won Radio Television Digital News Association awards locally and nationally, and in 2022, won a Webster Award.

With files from Liam Britten and Ruby Cornish