Stuck in a 'really bad bind,' Zeballos residents defy months-long evacuation order in wake of B.C. wildfire
Some residents have moved back to their homes despite a standing evacuation order
Standing in the main street of Zeballos, B.C., Mayor Julie Colborne looks up at the steep mountainside that looms over the village. The burnt forest is a reminder of the wildfire damage that has kept part of the village under an evacuation order since September.
Officials are worried the stability of the slope has been affected and burnt trees and rocks could fall on the homes below.
"There have been some moments where you're out on the street having a conversation. All of a sudden a wind gust comes through and you hear crack, crack and then a boom."
A lightning storm in mid-August ignited the tinder-dry forest in steep terrain just outside the village, leaving charred trees and brush in its wake.
"So there's always those few minutes of, you know, your heart in your throat and you go: OK. How close? How far? And is everybody OK?"
No homes were damaged, but the stability of the slope was affected in the weeks the fire burned.
With concern trees and rocks could come toppling down, about two dozen properties in the tiny village have been under an evacuation order for the last six months.
"The mountain side up here has always had some risk, and some homes more than others," Colborne said. "However, this has dramatically changed that risk."
Zeballos, a former gold mining village on the northwest coast of Vancouver Island, sits at the head of a picturesque inlet.
Today, economic fortunes for many of the 107 people who remain are largely tied to showing off the remote beauty of the place to tourists.
"It's quiet, it's got fresh air, it's got beautiful scenery," said resident Christina Lepore, noting that some find the lack of cellphone coverage awkward, but others find it refreshing.
Lepore and her husband Dan O'Connor bought the village's only hotel in 2003 to put up guests for their growing kayak and wildlife tour business.
For years, tour groups have come from as far away as Europe to experience the untouched nature that surrounds Zeballos. The business thrived, until life in the village was turned upside down by the wildfire.
The fire
At first, a few trees smouldered and smoked. But it wasn't long before the fire gained steam and started burning along the towering mountainside above the village.
"It sounded like a war zone … it was like living in a jet engine," O'Connor said of the intense sound of the fire in the trees behind the inn.
Lepore and O'Connor sent their guests home and closed down. Lepore went to stay with family in another town when thick smoke made breathing difficult.
O'Connor stayed behind, spending hours hosing down the deck of the inn to douse embers that were floating down from the fire.
Down the street, Felix Michael watched the fire burn from the backyard of the brown bungalow shares with his wife Rose-Ann.
"The ground was burning back here. You could see it straight through the trees," he said.
The fire crept within metres of their home, but eventually, rain arrived and helped crews put it out, without any damage to properties.
There was relief, but also the sense a longer ordeal was ahead.
New risk
Lepore and O'Connor were preparing to re-open the inn when they got the notice that it was within the evacuation zone.
The village was heeding the advice of provincial officials when it made the difficult choice to issue the order, said Colborne.
The order was initially issued for one week, but determining the stability of the slope has proved challenging, and it has been renewed every week since early September.
"I've known the people that are there just like family — that are inside that evacuation zone," Colborne said. "So of course it weighs heavily on my mind."
With few options for other housing in the tiny village, some families moved to other communities and have relied on emergency support funds from the provincial government.
Lepore and O'Connor laid off staff and kept the inn closed through the fall.
In limbo
The Michaels' home was also in the evacuation zone, but leaving wasn't an option for them. She is chief of the neighbouring Ehattesaht First Nation and he works as a logger.
Along with their son and their dog, they parked their travel trailer on the other side of town.
But after months passed, and nothing fell in their yard from the mountain, the Michaels decided to take their chances and move back, despite the evacuation order.
We know that there are risks involved. But we just don't have another option.- Chief Rose-Ann Michael, Ehattesaht First Nation
"We know that there are risks involved. But we just don't have another option," Rose-Ann Michael said.
They still go back to the trailer if the wind really starts to blow, like it did one night in January.
"There was a lot of noise on the mountain," Rose-Ann Michael said. "We actually jumped out of bed and came into our living room because it sounded so close… It was the scariest night ever."
Several other people are also living in their homes, despite the order.
Mayor Colborne said everyone is doing what they think is best in a tough situation.
"We have declared that the risk is unacceptable, and as long as they're aware that we have done that, and that they're going against an order, then no, we are not going to keep people out of their homes," she said.
But the line has been drawn at allowing children in the evacuation zone.
"When they can't make those decisions for themselves, you have to abide by the order."
'It's been six months'
With the situation dragging on, and unpaid bills piling up, Lepore and O'Connor sought legal advice and decided to reopen the inn.
Many regular guests have booked and the summer season looks promising, they say.
With no sign of fallen debris around the inn, Lepore questions whether the mountainside really poses more of a risk, and whether the evacuation order is still necessary.
"It says 'imminent danger' and I'm going, fair enough. We don't know. But it's been six months," she said.
Now that winter storms have blown through, the province has funded another study of the mountainside to see exactly what may have moved or fallen.
If the results are promising, some homes, or maybe the inn, could be removed from the evacuation zone, Colborne said.
If the report determines the slope is unstable and can't be salvaged, the situation could be declared a disaster, and residents may be eligible for provincial compensation for 80 per cent of the value of their properties.
Chris Seaby is confident the mountainside will hold. He just bought his house, even though he knew it was under the evacuation order.
"I paid what the lot's worth. So even if, worst-case-scenario, the place is totally demolished, if I still have the lot, I still have a future home, hopefully," he said.
Seaby is optimistic something can be done to ease the safety concerns. In the meantime, he's not worried about living in an evacuation zone.
"There's just too many things to worry about, to worry about one rock that may come down," he said. "If that's the way it's going to happen for me, I'm more than happy with that."
Property values drop
While the risk of the mountainside is up for debate among those who live in the village, there's no disagreement that property values have plummeted.
"I was happy when the fire got put out. Then later I realized that, wow, they should have just let it burn down," Rose-Ann Michael said.
Lepore and O'Connor, who are approaching their 70s, have put plans for retirement on hold. The inn is their nest egg, but trying to sell it is out of the question for now.
This mountain is ruined and it has ruined our lives somewhat.- Felix Michael
On top of the uncertainty, residents feel the situation could have been avoided if wildfire crews had responded more quickly and put out the fire before it threatened the village.
But much of B.C. was also already burning in what became the worst fire season on record for the province.
"Lives can never be replaced, and that is the number-one priority," said Doug Donaldson, B.C.'s Minister of Forests, Lands and Natural Resource Operations, and Rural Development.
"It's hard for people in B.C. to get their heads wrapped around that we are in a temperate rainforest and we had forest fire situations like we have never seen before on Vancouver Island."
But B.C.'s firefighting budget for the upcoming season reflects that more resources are needed, rising by 58 per cent to $101 million.
In the meantime, those inside the evacuation zone wait for word on whether they will ever be able to live in their homes without fear of the mountain.
"This mountain is ruined and it has ruined our lives somewhat," said Felix Michael. "We're stuck in a really bad bind."
Written and produced by Megan Thomas.