With winter looming, residents who lost homes during an aggressive wildfire north of Pemberton this past summer are pleading with officials for cleanup help.
Properties were reduced to rubble when the Downton Lake wildfire — first identified July 13 — ripped around Gun Lake. The Squamish-Lillooet Regional District (SLRD) previously confirmed 43 properties were completely destroyed and 11 properties were partially damaged.
A Sept. 26 document from SLRD staff that was shared with Glacier Media states the number of properties destroyed was 51 and five were partially damaged.
Residents were able to return to see their homes but they have not been able to start cleaning up.
Melanie Bitner says the fire left her 75-year-old father homeless.
“We’ve lost four generations of belongings,” she says, describing the scene as an “utterly flattened and unrecognizable landscape.”
Meanwhile, Gun Lake homeowner Tony Vlachos had his 3.4 acres go up in flames on Aug. 18.
"We have been really proactive since the fire to get our lives rebuilt as soon as possible and that first step is the cleanup process,” he says.
Vlachos’s home was lost during a dramatic fire tornado, he says, all caught on camera.
"My property was the epicentre and the firestorm downed every tree on the property. I believe I had over 200 large trees destroyed,” he says. "Nothing remains. Utter devastation.”
With snowfall fast approaching, he’s very concerned about fire debris contaminating the alpine lake that many people use as their water source.
"If winter comes and the mess is not cleaned up before the snow falls, the disaster will only get worse,” Vlachos says. "Spring melts and heavy rains will wash even more debris into the lake and cause irreparable damage to the lake and those that drink the water.”
A spokesperson with the Ministry of Emergency Management and Climate Readiness says the SLRD has hired a recovery manager, funded by the province.
The province is aware of concerns around potential wildfire debris contaminants in the lake, the spokesperson said.
“The province is supporting the Squamish-Lillooet Regional District with their wildfire recovery efforts, including working to ensure water quality is safe for people in the community,” the ministry said.
Clock is ticking, says homeowner
Vlachos and his wife are temporarily living at a friend's place in Gold Bridge. They say they’re fully insured and want to start cleaning up but say their work is being halted.
“I believe they [SLRD] want to test the ground, the ash, so now they want to do additional stuff,” said Vlachos.
He’s criticizing the local government and says work needs to start now so that people can start cleaning up the damage.
"They are not allowing any machinery within the riparian zone to begin cleanup without an additional environmental assessment and red tape,” he said. "We do not have much time. There are enough challenges to healing this environmental disaster.”
The Ministry of Emergency Management and Climate Readiness acknowledges that this is an incredibly difficult time for the people of Gun Lake.
"Our 2023 wildfire recovery team has been in contact with the SLRD to provide support in the recovery effort,” says the ministry spokesperson.
SLRD did not respond to Glacier Media's requests for comment.
The Vlachos family has lived at the lake for 15 years and has decided to purchase a mobile home with their insurance money.
“The fire tornado destroyed my life the first go around and I’m afraid they’re also going to destroy my future here at the lake,” he says.
‘Could feel the heat across the lake’
Vlachos’s concerns are echoed by another resident who decided to stay behind during the wildfire and fight it to save her property.
Michelle Nortje remembers the night the fire started well and felt she had to stay.
“It was super scary. It was just… it was unbelievable,” she says. “It was like we were living in a video game.”
She recalls her partner boating around the lake to properties where neighbours were putting out spot fires.
“It was such a powerful force. We could feel the heat across the lake. The air was hot to the touch. The wind was crazy,” she explains. “The lake was blood red. The sky was red.”
BC Wildfire Service posted a video of the wildfire tornado on social media. Nortje acknowledges it was a spectacle, but says it was also people’s homes being destroyed.
“Every explosion was someone’s home exploding. That didn't get portrayed when that video went viral,” she says. “It was tough.”
Nortje says many people who live on Gun Lake call it home.
“People think that because you live lakefront in B.C., you must be a millionaire but that is not it. A lot of these properties have been handed down through generations.”
She’s also concerned that if the properties don’t get cleaned up before the snow comes it could have detrimental impacts.
"I'd like to see the province step in and bring some environmental teams in, bring some hazmat teams and help these people clean up their properties.”
According to the spokesperson, both the Ministry of Emergency Management and Climate Readiness and the Ministry of Environment and Climate Change Strategy are "committed to supporting the Gun Lake community to recover as quickly as possible.”
Disaster Financial Assistance funds?
The ministry spokesperson says Disaster Financial Assistance (DFA) is available to help communities recover disaster-related losses that are not covered by insurance, such as wildfire damage to public infrastructure.
However, the Sept. 26 letter provided to Glacier Media states there are no funds for Gun Lake residents.
"Unfortunately, there are no Disaster Financial Assistance funds for the property owners as the province considers this loss an ‘insurable loss,’” the document reads.
It notes "staff have been preparing and sharing community updates, and other relevant documents to guide property owners on how to re-enter after an evacuation order is lifted as there are many potential hazards in the area, and on each property, such as hazardous trees and ash pits."
It goes on to state an expense authorization form was not approved for hazardous waste testing, mainly asbestos, which is required for debris removal.
"Staff have estimated the cost of this work to be between $30,000 and $50,000. This work would be facilitated by the SLRD who would contract the service to a testing company," reads the letter.
The staffer who wrote the letter states they would like to support the property owners of Gun Lake who require the hazardous materials testing so they can "move ahead with remediation and rebuilding."
