B.C. wildfire fighter’s viral thread takes on critics, describes challenges, urges compassion

VANCOUVER (NEWS 1130) — A social media post from someone on the frontlines fighting the wildfires raging in B.C. has gone viral. In the post, Incident Commander Kyle Young is pleading for compassion instead of criticism as crews struggle through “the most challenging summer.”

With fierce winds in the forecast for the hard-hit southern Interior, provincial officials are warning that fires are forecast to become more aggressive and harder to fight. Friday’s post by Young, shared by the BC Wildfire Service, comes as some people in communities threatened by fast-moving blazes have questioned response times and resource allocation, and defied evacuation orders.

“My name is Kyle Young and I am an Incident Commander with the #BCWildfire Service. I am writing this post rather than sharing a video message because, frankly, it would be too emotional for me."

— BC Wildfire Service (@BCGovFireInfo) August 14, 2021

“I am writing this post rather than sharing a video message because, frankly, it would be too emotional for me,” Young’s thread begins.

“I am someone that ground crews, my kids, and many other people, look up to for guidance through these challenging seasons. I have been doing this job for 16 years. I am a third generation wildland firefighter, following my father and grandfather.”

Young goes on to say he has only spent six days with his family since June 30 and that the firefighting effort is fueled by people who are dedicated, driven, and working tirelessly.

“The sacrifices to do this job are ultimately driven by passion, empathy, courage, and a huge amount of integrity. My family, along with hundreds of others, have sacrificed a lot in order for us to go out and help the people of British Columbia,” he writes.

“I understand there are other opinions out there that might not agree, but please know, from someone who has only been able to spend six days with his family since June 30th, I can attest to the dedication from every single person who is employed on these fires.”

— BC Wildfire Service (@BCGovFireInfo) August 14, 2021

Then Young outlines some of the challenges of the season, which began significantly earlier than usual with a fire that virtually destroyed the community of Lytton and comes amid a pandemic.

“2021 is different from previous years. We aren’t getting the resources we usually would from other jurisdictions due to the immense fire danger across Canada and the United States. Then you throw a global pandemic on top of it, which has impacted how we are able to manage fires and the resources we have available to draw from.”

More than 6,200 properties have been already evacuated because of the threat of a fire, while residents in about 27,000 properties have been placed on evacuation alert to be ready to leave. On Thursday, the entire community of Logan Lake — with a population of more about 2,000 — was ordered to leave.

“I understand there are other opinions out there that might not agree, but please know, from someone who has only been able to spend six days with his family since June 30th, I can attest to the dedication from every single person who is employed on these fires.”

— BC Wildfire Service (@BCGovFireInfo) August 14, 2021

Ultimately, he addresses people who have been questioning how fires have been managed, asking them to consider the impact on people like him before posting their opinions online.

“At the end of each grueling day, I wonder if everyone is okay. Not only on the incident I’m managing, but those working on other incidents, along with those deeply affected by the devastating wildfires. I wonder if I could have done something different, something better,” he writes.

“I wonder what tomorrow will bring, will it rain, will I be able to see my family soon, or will I open social media and be inundated with posts from people who speculate on what we do, or worse, what they think we don’t do.”

Increased fire activity in the Southern Interior area is forecasted over the weekend, including significant winds that may move fires quickly due to the nature of the terrain. The next 72 hours will be critical. For more: https://t.co/iHBySbwILZ pic.twitter.com/aVF3hOH1Df

— BC Wildfire Service (@BCGovFireInfo) August 13, 2021

Fires have already scorched more than 662,000 hectares of land, and there are 268 currently active. With no relief forecast for the dry, windy, hot conditions in British Columbia, the province has said massive and persistent fires in the south and central Interior will likely continue to burn until snow falls. One of those fires, the White Rock Lake fire, burning between Vernon and Kamloops has already grown to 58,000 hectares — more than five times the size of the city of Vancouver.

RELATED: Travel warning issued due to wildfires in B.C. Interior

Young says the focus now should be on getting through the rest of the summer as safely as possible, and not on second-guessing the province’s response.

“This season will pass and then everyone can ask questions, we will make adjustments, and we will reflect on what we learned this season. Right now, it’s time for us, as a province, to come together and support each other,” he writes.

“Help us, help your neighbors, help everyone get through the next six weeks of what has been the most challenging summer. Remind yourself that when you post something out of anger, frustration, fear, or heartbreak, there are other families out there feeling all those same things and reading your words that may be hurtful.”

B.C. remains in a state of emergency, originally declared on July 20. First Nations leaders, regional officials in the hard-hit Thompson-Nicola district, and the official opposition were among those who questioned why that move was not made sooner.