Premier John Horgan addressed the residents of Logan Lake this afternoon, a little more than a week after the Evacuation Order prompted by the Tremont Creek Wildfire was downgraded to an Evacuation Alert, allowing Logan Lakers to return home.

Logan Lake narrowly avoided destruction by the massive Tremont Creek Fire, which now measures 63,547ha, largely in part due to its excellent FireSmart program, a point that was commented on by both Premier Horgan and Minister of Forests, Lands, Natural Resource Operations and Rural Development.

“Most importantly I want to thank Mayor Smith and those who came before her for the FireSmart work that’s been done by Logan Lake’s community to ensure that the fires we just experienced stopped at the line and came no further,” said Horgan.

“That’s a testament to the hard work of the fire service, that’s a testament to those structural firefighters who came from around BC to Logan Lake to protect homes, to protect property and to protect people.”

Minister Conroy and Premier Horgan flew over the community of Logan Lake and the surrounding countryside, which has been heavily damaged by fire, and both agreed that the community of Logan Lake is one of the best prepared in the province to be defendable from wildfire events.

“It shows in what we saw, in what we flew over and saw,” said Conroy of the community’s 18 years of FireSmart work.

“The results of that are incredible.”

Amid the devastation of what Conroy said has been the worst wildfire season in BC’s history, both she and the Premier spoke of being better prepared, and in using Logan Lake as an example to other interface communities on how to keep homes and businesses safe from fire.

“We’re going to be looking at every tool at our disposal going forward,” said Horgan, tools which include increased practice of prescribed burning, and significant changes to the 2022-2023 budget which would provide a commitment to better preparing for wildfire seasons in future.

Logan Lake Mayor Robin Smith addressed those gathered, praising the efforts of all those who had played a hand in making the community FireSmart, including those from Logan Lake who helped to create the FireSmart program by sharing the community’s own principles in fire prevention and suppression as far up as the federal government. Logan Lake was recognized in 2013 as the first FireSmart community in Canada.

Mayor Smith was agreeable to the idea of Logan Lake being used as an example of what works to other communities in the fire ravaged province.

“We were very fortunate, and others weren’t,” said Smith.

“If there’s anything we that can do to be of assistance to any other communities that want to get on board and want to get working on FireSmart, we’re happy to help.”

Premier Horgan fielded media questions, many of which were related to the COVID-19 pandemic and the controversial vaccine passports. However, one reporter questioned why the people of Monte Lake had been vilified for remaining behind in contravention of the Evacuation Order, in an attempt to save their homes.

Premier Horgan said that he had now “walked a mile in their shoes”, having flown over the devastated area, and dismissed the claim by residents that more resources could have been utilized as the fire approached, and then engulfed, the area.

“We did everything we could, based on the briefings I’ve had to suppress the fire… we had every resource available put on not just on that fire but dozens of others that were burning simultaneously,” said Horgan.

“This is a challenge of climate change and we need to adapt and change how we approach these seasons, and that’s why we were talking about FireSmart and the success story that is Logan Lake.”

Horgan also claimed that declaring the much-requested State of Emergency provided no additional resources for the province, and that he didn’t believe it heightened public awareness of the ongoing and intense wildfires.

When asked, Horgan also did not confirm or deny whether the State of Emergency would be extended when it comes to an end on Aug. 31.