The Current - Wildfires in B.C. merge, threatening more communities

Episode Date: July 27, 2026

The Pear Lake and Fiftynine Creek fires were already roaring out of control near Clinton, British Columbia. But over the weekend, they merged, threatening communities northwest of Kamloops.We speak with Bernice Weihs-Anderson, a longtime resident of Clinton, B.C., and a former member of the village's volunteer fire department about her evacuation on Friday, and what her community needs right now.

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Hello, I'm Matt Galloway, and this is the current podcast. The Pear Lake and 59 Creek fires were already roaring out of control near Clinton, British Columbia, when they merged over the weekend, and are now threatening communities northwest of Kamloops. It's just one among the 139 wildfires burning in that province right now, and more evacuations are planned for today. Bernice Vice Anderson is a long-time resident of Clinton, BC, and a former member of the village's volunteer fire department. She and her husband evacuated on Friday. Bernice, hello. Hi there.

Tell me about Friday. What was it like when you had to leave Clinton? It was horrible. We have lived there for 16 years. I love the community. I have been there through prior evacuations that were not, nearly as as terrifying or dramatic. Describe it to me.

What was it like? Well, we went from an alert, the previous day, which is a warning that it might happen, to it happening very quickly. And the conditions deteriorating in that the fires were moving so unbelievably fast. Typically fires move uphill. These were coming downhill into the village on every side. And so what did you see as you left your community? Well, flames everywhere.

So all around. And you couldn't see well, though, because of the smoke. That's the problem for a lot of people like myself with having to leave. And I've been advised to move to a different climate for a while. Anyone that has breathing issues, of course, is suffering terribly. And even people who don't normally have asthma or any underlying conditions, when there is that much in the air, it's very difficult to breathe or see. I understand you were actually getting ready to move from Clinton because of what you've just described

and that you had just finalized the sale of your place. Is that right? Yes. It's tragic all the way around in that it took quite a while to sell. And then it finally came through on the Thursday. Then this happens on Friday. and the new owners were supposed to take possession Saturday morning and are stuck in a hotel somewhere without a home because they sold their home. Have you heard anything about how many homes have been affected or how many buildings? Have you gotten any updates? No, we've gotten very little.

Main concern is, of course, infrastructure. We lost power before leaving, which means obviously hydro poles, etc. down, hoping it's not a major station that's down, cell reception deteriorating because of cell towers going down as well. It's going to take a long time to recover that infrastructure. And even though sometimes people think, oh, wow, the fire's out, we can come back, the danger of the continued embers stuff burning underground means there can be flare-ups at any time for a while yet. You were a volunteer in the fire department. This might be why you know a little bit about

how fires work. But what do you think your community needs right now? What sorts of support? What sorts of resources? It's been tremendous what the province has been providing, you know, forest fires at the village itself, our fire department, tremendous colleagues. If people want to help make donations to fire departments or the Red Cross, which is serving the evacuees. Clinton was a center. People were coming to Clinton as evacuees. And then you can imagine the heartbreak. You're devastated. You don't know if your home's gone.

You sent to this village that's providing shelter. And then the village itself has to be evacuated. And also prepare your homes. This is happening in British Columbia everywhere. And people can do things to fire smart their own homes and properties. One, it's in your self-interest. But also it's in your community self-interest. If you can do those things, trim trees, get rid of mulch,

because that reduces for the entire community. Just before you go, I know you feel, though you were forced to leave Clinton, as your doctor recommended you leave because of the smoke affecting your asthma. But would you have wanted to stay in the community? Yeah, we love Clinton. Clinton is just a remarkable place. Love the people, the history. It's part of the gold rush.

It's a time when Clinton was bigger than Vancouver. It still has traditions that go back. We have an annual ball that started the same year's Confederation. that happens every year. There's all sorts of wonderful, long-term families that can trace their roots back that far. And we love the community. Health-wise, yes, having to make a decision to move

has been heartbreaking. And then now this last dramatic, you know, we're packing, we're just getting our stuff out of there for this move. And then it got so bad that we couldn't stay. We have served during evacuations in the community before. This time having to leave, yeah, it was horrendous. to leave the animals. We have a hobby farm and

we had to open the gates, let them get out to the creek and the marsh, and just pray that animals indeed are smarter than people and find the resources they need to get through this. And as soon as we can go back, we'll see if we can find them and move them up. Well, Bernice, I'm so sorry, that's a lot to deal with. We'll be hoping

for the best as well. What are you hoping for in the days ahead? Well, we're hoping that the damaged infrastructure is not too severe and that it can be deemed safe for people to start returning. I really hope that people appreciate the long-term effects, too. This is not one village or happening in one province. This affects everyone.

Massive stretches of forests are burning, and that's millions and millions of trees. And think of it this way, this is millions and millions of dollars out of your pocket books. As in this is everything from the cost of toilet paper to school, lives, not just locally, but across Canada. We'll leave it there. I appreciate you making time for us today. Thank you for your calling, your concern.

Bernice Vice Anderson is a longtime resident of Clinton, BC, and a former member of the village's volunteer fire department. She and her husband evacuated on Friday. This has been the current podcast. You can hear our show Monday to Friday on CBC Radio 1 at 8.30 a.m. at all time zones. You can also listen online at cbc.com.ca.com the current or on the CBC Listen app or wherever you get your podcasts. My name is Matt Galloway. Thanks for listening. For more CBC podcasts, go to cbc.ca.ca.com.