Gibsons to hold dialogue on wildfire issues March 10

The Town of Gibsons is launching its FireSmart community education program on March 10.

Mayor Bill Beamish announced at the Feb. 18 council meeting that Gibsons had received a $9,000 community resilience investment grant for the education program and more details were released by the Town this week.

“The recent wildfires in B.C. and South Australia and the trend toward drier summers have made our residents more aware of the potential threat of wildfires here on the Coast,” said Beamish. “This educational initiative is a good start toward helping people understand what steps they can take to reduce risks around their own homes and in their neighbourhoods. Accordingly, I strongly encourage our residents to take advantage of this free learning opportunity.”

A community dialogue on March 10 will include Matt Treit, manager of protective services at the Sunshine Coast Regional District, as well as representatives from the Gibsons and District Volunteer Fire Department (GDVFD).

The release from the Town said the second component of the education strategy will be building awareness of the GDVFD’s neighbourhood emergency preparedness program, which helps individual neighbourhoods implement FireSmart tactics and plan for emergencies. Neighbourhood groups of five or more households will be able to get assistance organizing an emergency preparedness meeting.

The final component of the FireSmart initiative will be a general education program to include distribution of the province’s FireSmart Homeowner’s Manual, which contains comprehensive information on how to assess and reduce the risk of wildfire on people’s properties.

The March 10 dialogue starts at 7 p.m. at High Beam Dreams, 350 Glassford Rd.

Gibsons residents interested in setting up a neighbourhood emergency planning meeting are encouraged to contact Silas White of Impact Resolutions ([email protected]), which is working with the Town on the program.