Over 600 migrant farm workers displaced by Okanagan wildfires

Hundreds of migrant farm workers are among those displaced by evacuation orders amid the wildfires in the Central Okanagan.

The Migrant Rights Network says more than 600 migrant farm workers in the Okanagan region had to evacuate from their accommodations as wildfires ripped through the Kelowna area late last week.

The organization is now coordinating with them to ensure those workers have access to essentials like accommodation, food, and counselling services — and down the road, compensation for lost wages.

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Migrant Rights Network organizer Byron Cruz says — while many of them were ready when the evacuation orders actually hit — the workers have been through a harrowing experience of having to leave their accommodations.

“When the police came with the orders to evacuate it was shocking but most of the workers knew they needed to leave and then we have been in communication with them. Some of them were very nervous,” he said.

Cruz says most of the workers have been moved to other farms that aren’t under evacuation order — but they’re worried about retrieving their belongings.

“We’re concerned because some of the workers are telling us that they left all their belongings and they don’t know what happened with the house that they were living in,” he said.

There’s also a concern that the housing for migrant workers is already cramped and overcrowded and adding more people to the mix doesn’t help that situation.

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Meanwhile, Cruz says some farms have also tried to tell their workers to come back to work even as evacuation alerts continue — prompting consulates to get involved.

“The consulates in Mexico, Guatemala, and the service agencies in the area were very supportive in communicating with the employer and the employer responded positively,” he added.

Migrant Rights Network is now asking the Canadian federal government to step in and make sure those workers get assistance as recovery efforts get underway.