Thirty additional search and rescue members are coming to Williams Lake on Saturday (today), said Central Cariboo Search and Rescue Chief Rick White.
“It’s been busy for us like everybody else,” White said at the SAR hall on Mackenzie Avenue Saturday morning.
White said a week ago Friday, his crews were tasked to set up hundreds of cots in the evacuation centre at Lake City Secondary School for people coming from the South Cariboo.
No sooner had they started getting organized to set up the cots when they got called to help evacuate Williams Lake Indian Band’s Sugar Cane community.
“That was really different for us, we’re not used to being so close to fires,” White said. “The fire was coming down the mountain toward the reserve at an incredible rate.”
Since then the hall has been manned 24/7 with crew members helping with evacuations.
Assistant Chief Don Trim said they’ve gone into the Meldrum and Riske Creek areas to assist with evacuations.
“We did along Highway 20 from Riske Creek until the fire actually chased us out,” Trim said.
Right from the onset two managers from South Cariboo Search and Rescue — Sam Bergman and Val Severyn arrived in Williams Lake to give the local team a hand.
“We also have 30 SAR members coming today from other areas in the province,” White said.
This week they received a truck load of donations from Fort McMurray that was delivered by the McLeese Lake Volunteer Fire Department.
“There was everything from respirators, water, food, safety glasses, toiletries, T-shirts, under wear and socks,” Trim said.
On Friday, CRD Area F director Joan Sorley told the Tribune a distribution centre has set up at the McLeese Lake community hall to receive donations and distribute them to different areas.
Here Central Cariboo Search and Rescue Chief Rick White and Assistant Chief Don Trim talk about the unit’s involvement with the wildfire situation.