Memorial planned for B.C. wildfire fighter in Revelstoke

A memorial procession and service are set to be held in Revelstoke Saturday for the 19-year-old BC Wildfire Service member who died on the job last week.

Devyn Gale was found caught under a fallen tree on July 13 while she was out with other firefighters clearing brush within the area where a small fire had started.

She was airlifted to the hospital but died of her injuries.

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The province says the memorial will include Gale’s colleagues, a Colour Party, Honour Guard, and first responders from various agencies.

The procession is set to begin at 12:45 p.m. at the Revelstoke Fire Rescue Services business and will lead to Revelstoke Secondary, where the memorial will begin at 1:30 p.m.

Gale was identified by her brother on social media after news of her death broke. She has been described as a “careful, considerate, hardworking” individual, who, according to her brother, was “smarter and better at what she did than she gave herself credit for.”

In an interview with CityNews, Revelstoke Mayor Gary Sulz expressed his shock, saying Gale’s passing was “an absolutely devastating loss for our community.”

“Even at a young age of 19, to be out in the bush doing this sort of thing is a testament to the person she is. She’s concerned about community, concerned about our ecology. And being willing to take this on, there’s a learning curve and she learned that and has done well to be in this field. What more can one say about someone whose strength, grit, and tenacity is about giving back?” Sulz said.

There have been three wildfire-personnel-related deaths in Canada so far this season. The same week of Gale’s passing, a firefighter in the Northwest Territories succumbed to injuries he sustained while he was battling a wildfire near his home community. Meanwhile, on Wednesday, July 19, a helicopter pilot died while fighting fires in northern Alberta after an incident involving the aircraft.