Yellowknife’s mayor says the municipality is prepared for another potentially difficult wildfire season.
Rebecca Alty appeared on an episode of CBC’s The House to discuss emergency preparedness, more than six months after the city was ordered to evacuate due to wildfire threats.
“It’s been full speed ahead on emergency preparedness starting last May and going up to today and continuing on through the summer,” she told host Catherine Cullen. “Once the evacuation was lifted and people were coming home, that’s when we moved into the recovery phase and the preparation for the next season.”
Alty said work under way at the city includes updating the municipality’s wildfire plan and evacuation preparedness for residents. She said that will include a firesmarting workshop.
Alty added the city has launched a review of the municipality’s wildfire response, known as an after-action assessment, which will include public input and help the city better prepare for and respond to future emergencies.
Advertisement.
Advertisement.
“A lot of the behind-the-scenes work that’s been happening since the fire … people are going to see that momentum now coming out in the public, so they’ll be able to engage more and learn more,” she said.
The city’s budget includes $100,000 to implement the recommendations of the after-action assessment and $20,000 for a public information session on evacuation preparedness.
Further details about when workshops will be held or how the public can provide input to the after-action assessment have yet to be released.
Alty said the territorial government will present to council at a noon meeting on March 18 regarding GNWT preparations for the upcoming wildfire season.
Advertisement.
Advertisement.
Premier RJ Simpson has warned that the 2024 wildfire season could be challenging as dry conditions persist and some holdover fires continue to burn.
Asked if she feels ready, Alty said the city could always use more time but staff have been “working full tilt.”
“You never know what Mother Nature is going to throw your way,” said the mayor, describing fresh work on scenarios ranging from a fire bearing down on Yellowknife to the city serving as a reception centre for another community.
“Do I wish there was more time in the day so we could do even more? Yes. But we’re working hard to make sure that there are plans in place for a variety of scenarios.”
Alty said the greatest thing the municipality needs is funding for emergency preparedness.
“There’s plenty of money if an emergency happens, but there’s none of that front-end money,” she said.
