B.C. fire crews temporarily pulled out as protest tried to ’overwhelm’ RCMP blockade

By Brianna Charlebois, Darryl Greer and Ashley Joannou
The Canadian Press in the Vancouver Sun
August 24, 2023
Category: Forestry
Region: Canada, Canada West

The B.C. Wildfire Service has confirmed it temporarily reassigned crews fighting fires in the province’s Shuswap region after protesters showed up at an RCMP roadblock in what police say was an effort to “overwhelm” the blockade. Police say the protesters challenged officers at the blockade on the Trans-Canada Highway, after “threats of violence” against emergency workers prompted the Mounties to increase their presence there. Some residents of the Shuswap in B.C.’s Interior have been refusing to obey wildfire evacuation orders, prompting officials to warn that they are putting lives at risk and compromising firefighting strategies. …The tensions over the evacuation orders that cover about 11,000 people in the Shuswap. …The group dispersed after about an hour. RCMP say in a statement that officers de-escalated the situation safely, without incident.

In related coverage:

Read More