Wildfire engulfs popular B.C. waterfall trail, highlighting what can be lost to flames
Officials say they cannot provide accurate count of evacuees due to rapid spread of new fires
Two weeks ago, Darrin Rigo was shooting a promotional video encouraging people to visit a beautiful waterfall trail in central B.C.
Now, he's wondering if he'll ever see it again.
On Wednesday, the Greer Creek recreation site about 100 kilometres southwest of Prince George was engulfed by the Greer Creek wildfire, which is classified as out of control.
A resident from nearby Vanderhoof, B.C., captured a photo of the trailhead with fire burning in the background. While he declined to be interviewed, the image was quickly shared across social media, with people familiar with the site mourning its possible loss.
WATCH Rigo reflects on the grief caused by wildfires:
"I'll be honest, I cried when I saw it," said Rigo, who visited the site as part of a tourism campaign showcasing hidden gems around Prince George.
"I think we maybe have to start saying goodbye to some of our favourite [places]. You know, if we see them, it could be the last time."
'What if we come back to nothing?'
That sentiment was echoed by members of the Yekochee First Nation who this week left their community about 285 kilometres northwest of Prince George, due to spreading wildfires.
"It's pretty scary," said Natasha Cameron, who is staying at a motel in Prince George with her five-year-old daughter. "What if we come back to nothing? The fire's pretty powerful. It could just change your whole life."
While the Yekoochee village is so far safe, officials could not provide information about the status of the Greer Creek Recreation Site, a popular day hike for people in the region.
WATCH | Drummers welcome evacuees in Prince George, B.C.
That lack of information is a sign of just how stretched officials are when it comes to managing the number of fires spreading across the province.
As of Thursday afternoon, there were more than 350 wildfires burning in the province, primarily in northern and central B.C.
Officials said Wednesday they could no longer provide an accurate estimate of how many people were being affected by evacuation orders as flames spread to rural and First Nations communities along the Highway 16 corridor west of Prince George.
Dwindling resources
Mark Parker, who chairs the Regional District of Bulkley-Nechako, where many of the new wildfire starts are centred, said despite the challenges, local leaders and crews are benefitting from lessons learned in 2018 when hundreds of people were forced from their homes due to what was, at the time, an unprecedented wildfire season in the region.
The difference, he said, is while 2018's evacuations were largely the result of one major complex of fires, this year, it is the result of dozens spread out all across the region.
"It's just the sheer volume of fires, the sheer geographical area," he said. "I mean, we've got 77,000 square kilometres in our regional district. You can appreciate the challenge it is to get out to these fires, to monitor them ... It's a different beast."
Feelings of loss
And even as people leave their homes to escape wildfires, there is little escape from the smoky skies that have covered much of the north and central parts of the province.
For most of this week, air quality in central B.C. has been among the worst in the world, sitting at 10+ on the air quality health index and spiking to more than 45 times the World Health Organization's air quality guideline values on popular third-party services that combine data from government, academic and personal particulate monitors.
While wildfires and smoke are now an annual occurrence in the B.C. Interior, Rigo said seeing the possible loss of a favourite trail has driven home the reality that other places he loves could be destroyed, as well.
"I travel around B.C. all the time, and now I think I'll have this feeling in the back of my head of, like, is this the last time I'm gonna see it this way?" he said.
"I'm grieving."
View photos of the devastation caused by B.C. wildfires:
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With files from Betsy Trumpener, Jason Peters and Randi-Marie Adams